https://theosophy.wiki/w-en/api.php?action=feedcontributions&user=Francisco+Cuevas&feedformat=atomTheosophy Wiki - User contributions [en]2024-03-29T09:59:00ZUser contributionsMediaWiki 1.39.4https://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._24&diff=36414Mahatma Letter No. 242018-08-05T15:08:15Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[Category:ML from Morya]] <br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Morya]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = October 1881 See [[Mahatma Letter No. 24#Context and background|below]].<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Simla, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 71 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 24#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 23|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 25|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 97|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 95|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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Very kind [[A. P. Sinnett|Sinnett]] Sahib — many thanks and salams for the tobacco-machine. Our frenchified and pelingized [[Koot Hoomi|Pandit]] tells me the little short thing has to be cooloted — whatever he may mean by this — and so I will proceed to do so. The pipe is short and my nose long, so we will agree very well toge[ther] I hope. Thanks — many thanks.<br />
<br />
The situation is more serious than you may imagine and we will want our best forces and hands to work at pushing away bad luck. But our [[Chohan]] willing and you helping we will scramble out somehow or another. There are clouds which are below your horizon<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/24-1_6985.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/24-1_6985_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Sahib''' means "friend" in Arabic and was commonly used in the Indian Sub-continent as a courteous term in the way that "Mr." and "Mrs." are used in the English language.<br />
* '''pelingized''' derives from a Tibetan word ''peling'' (''phyi-gling'') meaning outsider or foreigner, and particularly a Westerner. <br />
* '''cooloted''' refers to some preparation of the pipe. See [[Mahatma Letter No. 24#Commentary about this letter|below]].<br />
* '''Pandit''' refers to [[Koot Hoomi]].<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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and [[K.H.]] is right — the storm is threatening. Could you but go to Bombay to the Anniversary you would confer upon [[K.H.]] and myself a great obligation a lasting one — but that you know best. This meeting will be either the triumph or the downfall of the Society and a — gulf. You are wrong too about the Peling Sahib — he is as dangerous as a friend as an enemy very very bad as both I know him best. Anyhow you [[A. P. Sinnett|Sinnett]] Sahib reconciled me to a good many things you are true and true I will be.<br />
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Yours always [[M.]]<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/24-2_6986.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/24-2_6986_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Peling''' (''phyi-gling'', 'outer continent') is a Tibetan word meaning outsider or foreigner, particularly a Westerner. In this case it is referring to a special person, [[Allan Octavian Hume|Mr. Hume]].<br />
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== Context and background ==<br />
Hanson and Linton wrote that "[[Koot Hoomi|KH]] was preparing for his long retreat, and [[Morya|M]] was taking over his correspondence. This is the first letter received by APS from M."<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 73.</ref><br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 3. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
In pale sepia ink on a single sheet of vellum note paper. On the front of the sheet, the writing is diagonally on the page, and on the back, it is square with the paper.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 73.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
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== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
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== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
[[File:Nose pipe.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Water pipe with nasal adapter.]]<br />
The reference to the "tobacco machine" is a bit unclear. Linton and Hanson speculated that the phrase "has to be coolated" might have to do with breaking in the pipe before use. <br />
<br />
Anton Diachenko has suggested that the pipe involved might not be a Western-style pipe, but a variation of water pipe. Morya was reported by [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|HPB]] to have been a habitual user of a water pipe or hookah. The substance that Morya used to produce vapor is unknown. Mr. Diachenko suggests that it may have been something related to Ozone, a "substance with high enough negative Redox Potential". This speculation may be based on a quote in [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']] that says:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>He who would allotropise sluggish oxygen into Ozone to a measure of alchemical activity, reducing it to its pure essence (for which there are means), would discover thereby a substitute for an “Elixir of Life” and prepare it for practical use.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 144, fn.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
He goes on to suggest that for these purposes this "smoking" had to be not through the mouth but through the nose, as the nasal passages could more readily assimilate prana. Thus, Morya's pipe could have been a water pipe with an adapter to permit inhalation through the nose (maybe this is the meaning of the remark "The pipe is short and my nose long, so we will agree very well together"). The shape of that adapter resembles dressing pants, which in French are called '''culottes''', leading to the phrase "coolated".<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 73-74.</ref><ref>Email from Anton Diachenko to Janet Kerschner. February 27, 2014.</ref><br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 24]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._23&diff=36413Mahatma Letter No. 232018-08-05T15:05:35Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]] <br />
[[Category:ML needs background]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = late September, 1881 <br />
| receiveddate = late September or early October, 1881 <br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Simla, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 104 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 23#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 22|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 24|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 106|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 98|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Cover sheet ==<br />
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P.P.C. letter written before retirement<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-0_Cover_sheet_7171.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-0_Cover_sheet_7171_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''CIV''' penciled at top.<br />
* '''? Oct 81''' in pencil.<br />
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== Envelope ==<br />
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A P. Sinnett Es<br />
<br><br />
p.p.c.<br />
<br><br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-0_Envelope_7172.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-0_Envelope_7172_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''CIV''' penciled at top.<br />
* Number '''180''' penciled in upper right corner.<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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My dear friend: Your note received. What you say in it shows me that you entertain some fears lest I should have been offended by [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]]'s remarks. Be at ease, pray, for I never could be. It is not anything contained in his observations that annoyed me, but the persistence with which he was following out a line of argument that I knew was pregnant with future mischief. This <u>argumentum ad hominem</u> — renewed and taken up from where we had left it off last year was as little calculated as possible to draw the [[Chohan]] from his principles, or force him into some very desirable concessions. I dreaded the consequences and my apprehensions had a very good foundation, I can assure you. Please assure [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]] of my personal sympathy<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-1_7173.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-1_7173_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''argumentum ad hominem''' is an attempt to negate the truth of a claim by pointing out a negative characteristic of the person supporting it.<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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and respect for him and give him my most friendly regards. But I will not have the pleasure of "catching up" any more of his letters or answering them for the next three months. As nothing whatever of the Society's original programme is yet settled upon, nor do I hope of seeing it settled for some time to come I have to give up my projected voyage to Bhootan, and my Brother [[Morya|M.]] is to take my place. We are at the end of September and nothing could be done by October 1st that might warrant upon my insisting to go thither. My chiefs desire me particularly to be present at our New Year's Festivals, February next, and in order to be prepared for it I have to avail myself of the three intervening months. I will, therefore, bid you now good-bye my good friend, thanking you warmly<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-2_7174.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-2_7174_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Our New Year's Festivals''' refers to the Tibetan New Year called ''Losar'' (Wylie: lo-gsar) which varies in its date but generally falls on February or even early March (the 1882 losar was on February 18). Losar is celebrated for 15 days, with the main celebrations on the first three days.<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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for all you have done and tried to do for me. January next I hope to be able to let you have news from me; and, — save new difficulties in the way of the Society arise again from "your shore" — you will find me in precisely the same disposition and frame of mind in which I now part with both of you. Whether I will succeed in bringing my beloved but very obstinate [[Morya|Brother M.]] to my way of thinking is what I am now unable to say. I have tried and will try once more, but I am really afraid, [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]] and he would never agree together. He told me he would answer your letter and request through a third party — not [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mad. B.]] Meanwhile she knows quite enough to furnish [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]] with ten lectures had he but a desire to deliver them, and were he but to recognise the fact, instead of entertaining such a poor of her in one direction and such a very erroneous conception in some others. [[Morya|M.]]<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-3_7175.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-3_7175_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 4 ==<br />
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promised me though to refresh her failing memory and to revive all she has learned with him in as bright a way as could be desired. Should the arrangement fail to get [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]]'s approbation: I will have but to sincerely regret it, for it is the best I can think of.<br />
<br />
I leave orders with my "[[Djwal Khool|Disinherited]]" to watch over <u>all</u> as much as it lies in his weak powers.<br />
<br />
And now I must close. I have but a few hours before me, to prepare for my long, <u>very</u> long journey. Hoping we part as good friends as ever, and that we might meet as better ones still. Let me now "[[astral]]ly" shake hands with you and assure you of my good feelings once more.<br />
<br />
Yours as ever,<br />
<br />
[[K. H.]]<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-4_7176.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/23-4_7176_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
<br />
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== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 3. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
In blue ink on both sides of a single sheet of rippled white paper. The envelope is in the folio. It is addressed to A. P. Sinnett, Esq., with a "P.p.c." written in the lower right-hand corner. The script on the envelope is different from that of the letter.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 72.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
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== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
* Translation into [[:teopedia-ru-lib:Письма_Махатм,_п.20|Russian]].<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 23]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._22&diff=36412Mahatma Letter No. 222018-08-05T14:59:40Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]] <br />
[[Category:ML needs background]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]/[[A. O. Hume]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = Autumn, 1881<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Simla, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 26 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 22#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
<br><br />
<br><br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 21|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 23|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<br><br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 104|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 21|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
<br> <br />
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==Cover sheet ==<br />
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Received Simla, Autumn, 1881.<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/22-0_Cover_sheet_6542.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/22-0_Cover_sheet_6542_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* [[K.H.]]'s Confidential Memo about [[H. P. Blavatsky|Old Lady]].<br />
* XXVI. in pencil.<br />
<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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I am painfully aware of the fact that the habitual incoherence of [[H. P. Blavatsky|her]] statements — especially when excited — and her strange ways make her in your opinion a very undesirable transmitter of our messages. Nevertheless, kind Brothers, once that you have learned the truth; once told, that this unbalanced mind, the seeming incongruity of her speeches and ideas, her nervous excitement, all that in short, which is so calculated to upset the feelings of sober minded people, whose notions of reserve and manners are shocked by such strange outbursts of what they regard as her temper, and which so revolt you, — once that <u>you know</u> that nothing of it is due to any fault of hers, you may, perchance, be led to regard her in quite a different light. Notwithstanding that the time is not quite ripe to let you entirely into the secret; and that you are hardly yet prepared to understand the great Mystery, even if told of it, owing to the great injustice and wrong done, I am empowered to allow you a glimpse behind the veil. This state of hers is intimately connected with her [[Chelaship|occult training]] in Tibet, and due to her being sent out alone into the world to gradually prepare the way for others. After nearly a century of fruitless search, our chiefs had to avail themselves of the only opportunity to send out a European <u>body</u> upon European soil to serve as a connecting link between that country and our own. You do not understand? Of course not. Please then, remember, what she tried to explain, and what you gathered tolerably well from her, namely the fact of the [[Principle#Seven_principles_in_human_beings|<u>seven</u> principles]] in the <u>complete</u> human being. Now, no man or woman, unless he be an [[Initiation|initiate]] of the "fifth circle," can leave the precincts of <u>Bod-Las</u> and return back into the world in his<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/22-1_6543.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/22-1_6543_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* [[File:22-1 6543 detail.jpg|right|50px]] Top left of page shows an equilateral cross with four dots. In Sanskrit this could be a form of Swastika, but it also resembles an alchemical symbol for distilled vinegar, or a Jerusalem cross. <br />
* '''Bod-Las'''. This word, as it stands, does not exist. If we take it to be ''Bod-Lhas'' (''bod'': Tibet, ''lhas'': gods) it should be translated as "gods of Tibet." If we take it to be ''Bod-pas'', it would mean "Tibetans."<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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integral whole — if I may use the expression. One, at least of his seven satellites has to remain behind for two reasons: the first to form the necessary connecting link, the wire of transmission — the second as the safest warranter that certain things will never be divulged. She is no exception to the rule, and you have seen another exemplar — a highly intellectual man — who had to leave one of his skins behind; hence, is considered highly eccentric. The bearing and status of the remaining <u>six</u> depend upon the inherent qualities, the psycho-physiological peculiarities of the person, especially upon the idiosyncracies transmitted by what modern science calls "atavism." Acting in accordance with my wishes, my brother [[Morya|M.]] made to you through her a certain offer, if you remember. You had but to accept it, and at any time you liked, you would have had for an hour or more, the real <u>baitchooly</u> to converse with, instead of the psychological cripple you generally have to deal with now. Yesterday it was his mistake. He ought not to have sent her to deliver the message to [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]] in the state she was in. But to hold her responsible for her purely physiological excitement, and to let her see your contemptuous smiles — was positively <u>sinful</u>. Pardon me, my Brothers and good Sirs, my plain talk. I act but in accord with what was asked from me by yourself in your letter. I took the trouble to "ascertain the spirit and meaning" with which everything in [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]]'s room was said and done; and though having no right to "condemn" you — since you were ignorant of the true state of things — I cannot otherwise but strongly disapprove of that, which, however much polished outwardly would have been even under quite ordinary circumstances — <u><span style="border-bottom: 1px double #000;">Cruelty</span></u> still. <u>Buss</u>!<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''atavism''' is the reappearance of a characteristic in an organism after several generations of absence.<br />
* '''baitchholy''' is translated as "true, complete individual" by Charles J. Ryan.<ref>Charles J. Ryan, H. P. ''Blavatsky and the Theosophical Movement'', Theosophical University Press: 1975. [http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/hpb-tm/hpbtm-4.htm]</ref><br />
* '''Buss''' is an expression used by the [[Master]] that means "enough (for now)".<br />
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<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 2. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
In bright blue ink on both sides of a full-sized sheet of white paper, with medium heavy, carefully formed script.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 69.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
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== Additional resources ==<br />
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[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 22]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._21&diff=36411Mahatma Letter No. 212018-08-05T14:54:43Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]] <br />
[[Category:ML needs background]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = Autumn, 1881<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Simla, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 27 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 21#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 20|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 22|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 11|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Cover sheet ==<br />
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From [[K.H.]]<br />
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Rec Simla, Autumn, 1881.<br />
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About [[Stainton Moses|S. Moses]] attitude & [[C. C. Massey|Massey]]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* XXVII in pencil.<br />
* Number 51 penciled at top right.<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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I foresaw that which now happens. In my Bombay letter I advised you to be prudent as to what you allowed [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] to learn of [[Imperator|+]] and his own [[mediumship]], suggesting that he should be told merely the substance of what I said. When, watching you at Allahabad I saw you making instead copious extracts for him from my letter, I again saw the danger but did not interfere for several reasons. One of them is, that I believe the time fully come when social and moral safety demands that someone of the [[Theosophical Society|Theos. Soc.]] should speak the truth though the Himalaya fall on him. The unveiling of the ugly truth has to be done with the greatest discretion and caution though; and I see that instead of getting friends and supporters in the camp of the Philistines — whether on that or this side of the Oceans — many of you — yourself with the rest — breed but enemies by making too much of me and my personal opinions. On that side, the irritation is great and you will soon find flashes of it in the Light and elsewhere; and, you "shall lose [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]]" The copious extracts have done their work for they were — much too copious. No powers whether human or super-human can ever open the eyes of [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] — it was useless to tear them open. On this side — it is still worse. The good people at Simla are not very metaphorically inclined and allegory will no more stick to their epidermis than would water to the feathers of a goose. Besides, — no one likes to be told that he "smells bad" and the joke extracted<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"the Light"''' refers to [[The Banner of Light (periodical)|''The Banner of Light'']], a [[Spiritualism|Spiritualist]] newspaper founded by Luther Colby of Boston in 1857. See note [[ML17#Page 2|here]].<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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from a remark but too full of deep psychological meaning has produced incalculable harm in quarters where otherwise, the [[Simla Eclectic Theosophical Society|S.E.T.S.]] might have recruited more than one convert. . . . I must return once more to the letter.<br />
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The strongest basis of complaint against me is the fact that my statement implies (a) a kind of challenge to [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] to prove [[Imperator|+]] a "Spirit" — (b) I am severely denounced by our friend for making out [[Imperator|+]] — a liar. Now, I mean to be explanatory but not apologetic. I most certainly meant both; only I meant it for you, who had asked me for the information, by no means for him. He has not proved his case, nor did I expect he would, even if he thought he could, as the claim rests entirely upon his own personal assertion due to his unwavering faith in his own impressions. It would be easy for me, on the other hand, to prove [[Imperator|+]] no disembodied Spirit at all, had I not very good reasons for not doing so at present. I had worded my letter very carefully, so, that, while letting you have a glimpse of the truth, I showed you most clearly that I had no right to divulge the "secret of a [[Brother]]." But, my very good friend, I had never told you in so many words who and what he was. I might, perhaps, have advised you to judge [[Imperator|+]] by his alleged writings, for more fortunate in that than Job, our "enemies" "all write books." They are very fond of dictating inspirational gospels and so — get caught at the glue of their own rhetorics. And who of the most intellectual Spirit[ualis]ts who have read the complete works fathered upon [[Imperator|+]] would dare maintain that with the exception of a few extremely remarkable pages the rest is not below what [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] could have himself written, and far better? Rest assured<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''S.E.T.S.''' means the [[Simla Eclectic Theosophical Society]].<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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that no intelligent, clever and truthful [[mediumship|medium]] needs "inspiration" from a disembodied "Spirit." Truth will stand without inspiration from Gods or Spirits, and better still — will stand in spite of them all; "angels" whispering generally but falsehoods and adding to the stock of superstition.<br />
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It is in view of such little unpleasantnesses that I have to abstain from satisfying [[C. C. Massey]]. I will not avail myself of his "authority," nor fulfil his "desire," and I refuse most decidedly to "communicate his secret" as it is of a nature which stands in his way for the attainment of [[adept]]ship, but has nothing whatever to do with his private character. This information again was meant for you, as an answer to your surprised query whether there could be any impediments for my communicating with him and guiding him to the Light, but it was never intended for his ears. He may have a page or two in his life's history which he would rather see obliterated; but, his loyal and faithful instincts will always give him precedence and place him far above many a man who remained chaste and virtuous only because he never knew what temptation was. I will abstain, then, with your kind permission. In the future, my very dear friend, we will have to limit ourselves entirely to philosophy and avoid — family gossip. Skeletons in family closets, are at times, more dangerous to meddle with, than even — dirty turbans, <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 4 ==<br />
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my illustrious and dear friend. And let not your too sensitive heart be troubled, or your imagination lead you to suppose that one single word of what I have now said is meant to convey a reproach. We, half savage Asiatics judge a man by his motives, and yours were all that is sincere and good. But you have to remember that you are at a hard school, and dealing now with a world entirely distinct from your own. Especially have you to bear in mind that the slightest [[Karma|cause]] produced, however unconsciously, and with whatever motive, cannot be unmade, or its effects crossed in their progress — by millions of gods, demons, and men combined. Therefore, you must not think me too hypercritical when I say, that all of you have been more or less imprudent, when not indiscreet — the latter word applying — so far — but to one of the members. Hence — you will perhaps see, that the mistakes and blunders of [[H. S. Olcott|H. Steel Olcott]], are of a lighter hue than they at first appear, since even Englishmen, far more intelligent and versed in the world's ways than he is, are as liable to err. For you have erred, individually and collectively, as will be made apparent in a very near future; and the management and success of the Society will prove as a result far more difficult in your case, since none of you is as ready to admit that he has done so, nor are you as prepared as he is, to follow any advice offered you, though in each case, it is based on foresight of impending events, even when foretold in a phraseology which may not always come "up to the mark" of the [[adept]] — as he should be in accordance with your own views.<br />
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You may tell [[C. C. Massey|Massey]] what I now say of him, and the<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 5 ==<br />
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reasons given. You may — though I would not advise you — read this letter to [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]]. But I would strongly urge upon you the necessity of a greater caution than ever. Notwithstanding the purity of motives, the [[Chohan]] might one day consider but the results, and these may threaten to become too disastrous for him to overlook. There should be a constant pressure brought to bear upon the members of the [[Simla Eclectic Theosophical Society|S.E.S.]] to keep their tongues and enthusiasm at bay. And yet there is an increasing concern in the public mind, in regard to your Society and you may soon be called upon to define your position more clearly. Very soon I will have to leave you to yourselves for the period of three months. Whether it will begin in October or January will depend on the impulse given to the Society and its progress.<br />
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I would feel personally obliged to you were you to kindly consent to examine a poem written by [[Sorabji J. Padshah|Padshah]], and give your opinion on its merits. I believe it too long for the [[The Theosophist (periodical)|Theosophical Journal]], nor do its literary merits warrant exactly or justify the claim. However, I leave it to your better judgment. I am anxious that the [[The Theosophist (periodical)|Journal]] should be more successful this year than it has heretofore been. The suggestion to translate the Grand Inquisitor is mine; for its author, on whom the hand of [[Death]] was already pressing when writing it, gave the most forcible and true description of the Society of Jesus than was ever given before. There is a mighty lesson contained in it for many and even you may profit by it.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''S.E.S.''' refers to the [[Simla Eclectic Theosophical Society|Simla Eclectic [Theosophical] Society]].<br />
* '''S. J. Padshah''' was a member who on [[August 27]], 1881, published in ''The Bombay Gazette'' a statement entitled [http://blavatskyarchives.com/padshah.htm# "The Theosophists and ''The Occult World''"] vouching for the existence of the [[Masters of the Wisdom]] claiming he had seen "more than one of them" and that he was a disciple of [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]]<br />
* '''''The Grand Inquisitor''''' is a parable in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's novel ''The Brothers Karamazov'' (1879–1880).<br />
* '''The Society of Jesus''' is a Catholic male religious order whose members are known as "Jesuits".<br />
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== Page 6 ==<br />
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My dear friend, you must not feel surprised if I tell you, that I really feel weary and disheartened at the prospect I have before me. I am afraid you never will have the patience to wait for the day when I am permitted to satisfy you. Ages ago our people began to make certain rules, according to which they intended to live. All these rules have now become LAW. Our predecessors had to learn everything they know by themselves, only the foundation was laid for them. We offer to lay for you such a foundation but you will accept nothing short of the complete edifice, ready for you to take possession of. Do not accuse me of indifference or neglect when not receiving for days any reply from me. Very often I have nothing to say, for you ask questions which I have no right to answer.<br />
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But I must conclude here, as my time is limited and I have some other work to do.<br />
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Yours sincerely,<br />
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[[K. H.]]<br />
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The brandy atmosphere in the house is dreadful.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Context and background ==<br />
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== Physical description of letter ==<br />
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The original is in the British Library, Folio 2. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
In bright blue ink on three large sheets of white paper, heavy lettering with blotched appearance. At the beginning of the letter is a symbol resembling a cross with a dot in each quadrant.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 68.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
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== Publication history ==<br />
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== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
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== Additional resources ==<br />
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[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 21]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._20&diff=36410Mahatma Letter No. 202018-08-05T14:50:21Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = August 5, 1881 <br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Umballa, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 49 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 20#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 19|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 49|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 77|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Cover sheet ==<br />
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Letter from [[K.H.]], received at Umballa on the way to Simla about August 5, 1881.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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Just home. Received more letters than I care to answer — yours excepted. Having nothing particular to say, I will simply attend to your questions; a task which may seem an easy one, but is not so, in reality, if we but remember that similar in that to the deity described in <u>[[Upanishads (book)|Upanishad]]</u> as "Sokāmayata bahuh syām prajāye yeti"—they "love to be many and to multiply." At any rate, thirst for knowledge was never regarded as a sin and you will always find me prompt to answer such queries—that can be answered.<br />
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Certainly I am of opinion that since our correspondence was established for the good of the many it would prove very little profitable to the world at large unless you do recast the teachings and ideas contained therein "in the form of an essay," not only on the [[occult]] philosophical view of creation but upon every other question. The sooner you begin your "future book" the better; for who can answer for unexpected incidents? Our correspondence may break off suddenly the obstacle coming from those who <u>know best</u>. <u><span style="border-bottom: 1px double #000;">Their mind</span></u>—as you know, is a sealed book for many of us, and which no amount of "art magic" can break open. Further "aids to reflection" will however come in good time; and the little I am permitted to explain, may, I hope, prove more comprehensive than [[Eliphas Levi]]'s <u>Haute Magie</u>. No wonder you find it cloudy, for it was never meant for the uninitiated reader. [[Eliphas Levi|Eliphas]] studied from the [[Rosicrucianism|Rosicrucian]] MSS. (now reduced to three copies in Europe). These expound our eastern doctrines from the teachings of [[Christian Rosenkreuz|Rosencranz]], who, upon his return from Asia dressed them up in a semi-[[Christianity|Christian]] garb intended as a shield for his pupils, against clerical revenge.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"The deity described in Upanishad"''' refers to [[Brahman]]'s statement in the ''Taittirīya Upaniṣad'' (2.6.1): ''so 'kāmayata bahu syām prajāyeyeti'', which can be translated as, "He desired—Let me become many, let me be born."<br />
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One must have the key to it and that key is a science per se. [[Christian Rosenkreuz|Rosencranz]] taught orally. [[Saint Germain]] recorded the good doctrines in figures and his only cyphered MS. remained with his staunch friend and patron the benevolent German Prince from whose house and in whose presence he made his last exit—<u><span style="border-bottom: 1px double #000;">Home</span></u>. Failure, dead failure! Speaking of "figures" and "numbers" [[Eliphas Levi|Eliphas]] addresses those who know something of the [[Pythagoras|Pythagorean]] doctrines. Yes; some of them do sum up all philosophy and include all doctrines. Isaac Newton understood them well; but withheld his knowledge very prudently for his own reputation, and very unfortunately for the writers of <u>Saturday Review</u> and its contemporaries. You seem to admire it — I do not. However talented from the literary point of view, a paper which gives vent to such unprogressive and dogmatic ideas as the one I came across in it, lately, ought to lose caste among its more liberal confreres. Scientific men, it thinks — "do not make at all good observers" at exhibitions of modern [[Magic|magic]], [[spiritism]] and other "nine days wonders." This is certainly not as it should be, it adds for, "<u>knowing as well as they do the limits of the natural</u> (?!!) they should begin by assuming that what they see, or what they think they see, <u>cannot be done</u>, and should next look for the fallacy" etc. etc. Circulation of the blood, electric telegraph, railway and steamer argument all over again. <u>They</u> <u>know</u> "the limits of the natural"!! Oh, century of conceit and mental obscuration! And we are invited to London among these academical rags whose predecessors persecuted [[Mesmer]] and branded <u>[[St. Germain]]</u> as an impostor! All is <u>secret</u> for <u>them</u> as yet in nature of <u>man</u>—they know but the skeleton and form;<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Saturday Review''' was ''The Saturday Review of Politics, Literature, Science, and Art'' was a London weekly newspaper established by A. J. B. Beresford Hope in 1855.<br />
* '''"His only cyphered MS."''' The French Library at Troyes has a ciphered MS. (No. 2400) attributed to [[Saint Germain]], entitled "La Tres Sainte Trinosophie" (''The Most Holy Trinosophia''). Some attribute this MS. to [[Cagliostro]].<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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hardly are they able to outline the paths through which the invisible messengers they call "senses" pass on their way to man's perceptions; their school science is a hot-bed of doubts and conjectures; it teaches but its own sophistry, infects with its emasculation, its scorn for truth, its false morality and dogmatism, and its representatives would boast knowing <u>"the limits of the natural."</u> <u><span style="border-bottom: 1px double #000;">Bus</span></u>—my good friend; I would forget you belonged to this generation, and are an admirer of your "modern Science." Her behests and oracular verdicts are on a level with the papal—<u>non possumus</u>. Yes; the <u>Saturday Review</u> has let us off easily enough to be sure. Not so the <u>[[Spiritualism|Spiritualist]]</u>. Poor perplexed, wee paper! You gave it a tremendous blow. Losing its footing on [[Mediumship|mediumistic]] ground, it fights its death struggle for supremacy of English [[adept]]ship over Eastern knowledge. I almost hear its sub rosa cry: "If we [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] are shown to be in the wrong box so are you — [[theosophist]]s." The great "[[Adept]]," the formidable J.K. is certainly a dangerous enemy; and I am afraid, our [[Bodhisattva|Boddhisatwas]] will have to confess some day their profound ignorance before his mighty learning. "Real [[Adept]]s like [[Gautama Buddha]] or [[Jesus Christ]] did not shroud themselves in mystery, but came and taught openly," quoth our [[oracle]]. If they did it's news to us — the humble followers of the former. [[Gautama Buddha|Gautama]] is qualified the "Divine Teacher" and at the same time "<u><span style="border-bottom: 1px double #000;">God</span></u>'s messenger"!! (See Spt., July 8th, p. 21. para 2.) [[Buddha]] has now become the messenger of one, whom He, Sankia K'houtchoo, the precious [[wisdom]], has dethroned 2,500 years back, by unveiling the Tabernacle and showing its emptiness. Where did that cockney [[adept]] learn his [[Buddhism]], I wonder? You really ought to advise your <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Bus''' or '''Buss''' is an expression used by the [[Master]] that means "enough (for now)". <br />
* '''Non possumus''' is a Latin expression meaning literally "We cannot" (or "will not"). This was the name given to the diplomatic policy of several popes in their relations with foreign powers.<br />
* '''The Saturday Review'''. See note above.<br />
* '''Sub rosa''' is a Latin phrase used in English to denote secrecy or confidentiality.<br />
* '''J.K.''' refers to Julius Kohn, known as a "Jewish Kabalist." He wrote the article "Information for Theosophists, from an Adept" in the [http://www.iapsop.com/archive/materials/spiritualist/spiritualist_v19_n2_jul_8_1881.pdf# ''Spiritualist'', July 8th, pp. 20-22], where he arrogantly attacked the [[Masters of Wisdom|Masters]] and the [[Theosophical Society]].<br />
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friend Mr. [[C. C. Massey]] to study with that London Jewel who so despises Indian [[occult]] knowledge "The Lotus of the Good Law," and "Atma Boddha" — in the light of Jewish [[Kabbalah|Kabalism]].<br />
<br />
I, "annoyed at newspaper ribald notices?" Certainly not. But I do feel a little wrathful at the sacrilegious utterances of J.K.; that I confess. I felt like answering the conceited fool — but "so far shalt thou go and no further" — again. The [[Hobilghan]] to whom I showed the passage laughed till the tears streamed down his old cheeks. I wish I could. When the "[[H. P. Blavatsky|Old Lady]]" reads it, there will be a cedar or two damaged at Simla. Thanks indeed for your kind offer to let me have possession of the Review scraps; but I rather you should preserve them yourself, as these notices may prove unexpectedly valuable to you in a few years hence.<br />
<br />
To your offer to give a solemn pledge never to divulge anything without permission, I can give no answer, at present. Neither its acceptance nor rejection depend of me, to tell you the truth, since it would be quite an unprecedented event to pledge an outsider to our own particular form of oath or promise, and that no other would hold good in my Superior's opinion. Unfortunately for both of us, once — or rather twice — upon a time you made use of an expression which was recorded, and but three days ago, when pleading for some privileges for you, it was brought out before me very unexpectedly, I must say. Upon hearing it repeated and seeing it recorded, I had but to turn, as gently as I could, the other cheek to still more unexpected <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"The Lotus of the Good Law"''' or "Lotus Sutra" (Saddharmapuṇḍarīka sūtra) is one of the earlier [[Mahāyāna Buddhism|Mahāyāna Buddhist]] texts venerated as the quintessence of truth by the Japanese Tendai and Nichiren sects.<br />
* '''"Atma Boddha"''' is probably referring to the work written by [[Śankarāchārya]].<br />
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== Page 5 ==<br />
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buffets of fortune dealt out by the respected hand of him whom I so revere. Cruel as the reminder seemed to me it was just, for you have pronounced these words at Simla: "I am a member of the [[Theosophical Society]] but in no way a [[Theosophist]]," you said. I am not breaking confidence in revealing this result of my plaidoyer to you, as I am even advised to do so. We have to travel then, at the same slow rate at which we have hitherto gone, or — halt at once and write Finis at the bottom of our letters. I hope you will give preference to the former.<br />
<br />
Once we are upon the topic, I wish you would impress upon your London friends some wholesome truths that they are but too apt to forget, even, when they have been told of them over and over again. The [[Occult Science]] is not one, in which secrets can be communicated of a sudden, by a written or even verbal communication. If so, all the "[[Brothers]]" should have to do, would be to publish a Hand-book of the art which might be taught in schools as grammar is. It is the common mistake of people that we willingly wrap ourselves and our [[siddhis|powers]] in mystery — that we wish to keep our knowledge to ourselves, and of our own will refuse — "wantonly and deliberately" to communicate it. The truth is that till the [[neophyte]] attains to the condition necessary for that degree of Illumination to which, and for which, he is entitled and fitted, most if not all of the Secrets are incommunicable. The receptivity must be equal to the desire to instruct.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Plaidoyer''' is a French expression meaning a defense of a position, such as a plea or argument in court.<br />
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== Page 6 ==<br />
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The illumination must come from within. Till then no hocus pocus of incantations, or mummery of appliances, no metaphysical lectures or discussions, no self-imposed penance can give it. All these are but means to an end, and all we can do is to direct the use of such means as have been empirically found by the experience of ages to conduce to the required object. And this was and has been no secret for thousands of years. Fasting, [[meditation]], chastity of thought, word, and deed; silence for certain periods of time to enable nature herself to speak to him who comes to her for information; government of the animal passions and impulses; utter unselfishness of intention, the use of certain incense and fumigations for physiological purposes, have been published as the means since the days of [[Plato]] and [[Iamblichus]] in the West, and since the far earlier times of our Indian [[Rishi]]s. How these must be complied with to suit each individual temperament is of course a matter for his own experiment and the watchful care of his tutor or [[Guru]]. Such is in fact part of his course of discipline, and his [[Guru]] or [[Initiation|initiator]] can but assist him with his experience and will power but can do no more until the last and Supreme [[initiation]]. I am also of opinion that few candidates imagine the degree of inconvenience — nay suffering and harm to himself — the said [[Initiation|initiator]] submits to for the sake of his pupil. The peculiar physical, moral, and intellectual conditions of [[neophyte]]s and [[Adept]]s <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 7 ==<br />
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alike vary much, as anyone will easily understand; thus, in each case, the instructor has to adapt his conditions to those of the pupil, and the strain is terrible for to achieve success we have to bring ourselves into a full rapport with the subject under training. And as, the greater the powers of the [[Adept]] the less he is in sympathy with the natures of the profanes who often come to him saturated with the emanations of the outside world, those animal emanations of the selfish, brutal, crowd that we so dread — the longer he was separated from that world and the purer he has himself become, the more difficult the self-imposed task. Then — knowledge, can only be communicated gradually; and some of the highest secrets — if actually formulated even in your well prepared ear — might sound to you as insane gibberish, notwithstanding all the sincerity of your present assurance that "absolute trust defies misunderstanding." This is the real cause of our reticence. This is why people so often complain with a plausible show of reason that no new knowledge is communicated to them, though they have toiled for it for two, three or more years. Let those who really desire to learn abandon all and come to us, instead of asking or expecting us to go to them. But how is this to be done in your world, and atmosphere? "Woke up sad on the morning of the 18th." Did you? Well, well, patience, my good brother, patience. Something has occurred, though you<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"The morning of the 18th."''' In [[ML18|letter No. 18]] the [[Mahatma]] wrote to [[A. P. Sinnett]]: "Remember then on the 17th of July and..." followed by six lines that have been deleted from the original.<br />
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== Page 8 ==<br />
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have preserved no consciousness of the event. But let this rest. Only what more can I do? How am I to give expression to ideas for which you have as yet no language? The finer and more susceptible heads get like yourself, more than others do, and even when they get a little extra dose it is lost for want of words and images to fix the floating ideas. Perhaps, and undoubtedly you know not to what I now refer to. You will know it one day — Patience. To give more knowledge to a man than he is yet fitted to receive is a dangerous experiment; and furthermore, other considerations go to restrain me. The sudden communication of facts, so transcending the ordinary, is in many instances fatal not only to the [[neophyte]] but to those directly about him. It is like delivering an infernal machine or a cocked and loaded revolver into the hands of one who had never seen such a thing. Our case is exactly analogous. We feel that the time is approaching, and that we are bound to choose between the triumph of Truth or the Reign of Error and — Terror. We have to let in a few chosen ones into the great Secret, or — allow the infamous [[Dugpa#Shammar|Shammars]] to lead Europe's best minds into the most insane and fatal of superstitions — [[Spiritualism]]; and we do feel as if we were delivering a whole cargo of dynamite into the hands of those, we are anxious to see defending themselves against the [[Dugpas|Red Capped]] [[Brothers of the Shadow]]. You are curious to know<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Infamous Shammars'''. The Tibetan word ''shamar'' (ཞྭ་དམར ''zhwa dmar'') means "red hat." Here it is a reference to Tibetan [[dugpa]]s.<br />
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== Page 9 ==<br />
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where I am travelling about; to learn more of my great work and mission? Were I to tell you, you could hardly make anything of it. To test your knowledge and patience, I may answer you though — this once. I now come from Sakkya-Jong. To you the name will remain meaningless. Repeat it before the "[[H. P. Blavatsky|Old Lady]]" and — observe the result. But to return. Having then, to deliver with one hand the much needed yet dangerous weapon to the world, and with the other to keep off the [[Dugpa#Shammar|Shammars]] (the havoc produced by them already being immense) do you not think we have a right to hesitate, to pause and feel the necessity of caution, as we never did before? To sum up: the misuse of knowledge by the pupil always reacts upon the [[initiation|initiator]]; nor, do I believe you know yet, that in sharing his secrets with another, the [[Adept]] by an immutable Law, is delaying his own progress to the Eternal Rest. Perhaps, what I now tell you, may help you to a truer conception of things, and to appreciate our mutual position the better. Loitering on the way, does not conduce to a speedy arrival at the journey's end. And, it must strike you as a truism, that a Price must be paid for everything and every truth by somebody and in this case — we pay it. Fear not; I am willing to pay my share, and I told so those who put me the question. I will not desert you; nor will I show myself less self-sacrificing than the poor, <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Sakkya-Jong''' (also spelled Sakia-jong or Sakya-dzong). The [[Master]] may be referring to the chief monastery of the Sakyapa Order situated about 150 km southwest of Shigatse.<br />
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== Page 10 ==<br />
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worn out mortality we know as the "[[H. P. Blavatsky|Old Lady]]." The above must remain between us two. I expect you to regard this letter as strictly confidential for it is neither for publication nor your friends. I want you alone to know it. Only, if all this was more generally known to candidates for [[initiation]], I feel certain they would be both more thankful and more patient as well as less inclined to be irritated at what they consider our reticence and vacillations. Few possess your discretion; fewer still know to appreciate at their true value the results obtained. . . . <br />
<br />
Your two letters to [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] will lead to no result whatever. He will remain as immovable and your trouble will have been taken in vain. You will receive a letter from him full of suspicion and with no few unkind remarks. You cannot persuade him that [[Imperator|+]] is a living [[Brother]] for that was tried and — failed; unless, indeed, you convert him to popular exoteric [[Tibetan Buddhism|Lamaism]]; which regards our "Byang-tzyoobs" and "Tchang-chubs" — the [[Brothers]] who pass from the body of one great Lama to that of another — as [[Lha]]s or disembodied Spirits. Remember what I said in my last of [[Planetary Spirits]]. The Tchang-chub (an [[adept]] who has, by the power of his knowledge and soul enlightenment, become exempt from the curse Of UNCONSCIOUS transmigration) — may, at <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Byang-tzyoobs''' and '''Tchang-chubs'''. Usually spelled ''changchub'' (Tib. ''byang chub'') the term is a translation of the [[Sanskrit]] word ''bodhi'', meaning enlightenment or awakening. In Tibetan, ''Chang'' (byang) means purified and ''chub'' means replete.<br />
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== Page 11 ==<br />
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his will and desire, and instead of [[reincarnation|reincarnating]] himself only after bodily death, do so, and repeatedly — during his life if he chooses. He holds the power of choosing for himself new bodies — whether on this or any other planet — while in possession of his old form, that he generally preserves for purposes of his own. Read the book of Khiu-tee and you will find in it these laws. She might translate for you some paras, as she knows them by rote. To her you may read the present.<br />
<br />
Do I often laugh at "the helpless way in which you grope in the dark?" Most decidedly not. That would be as unkind and about as foolish for me to do as for you to laugh at a [[Hinduism|Hindu]] for his pidgin English, in a district, where your Government will not teach people English. Whence such a thought? And whence that other to have my [[Portraits of the Masters|portrait]]? Never had but one taken, in my whole life; a poor ferrotype produced in the days of the "Gaudeamus" by a travelling female artist — (some relative, I suppose, of the Munich Beer-Hall beauties that you have interviewed of late) — and from whose hands I had to rescue it. The ferrotype is there, but the image itself has vanished: the nose peeled off and one of the eyes gone. No other to offer. I dare not promise for I never break my word. Yet — I may try — some day to get you one.<br />
<br />
Quotation from [[Alfred, Lord Tennyson|Tennyson]]? Really cannot say. Some stray lines picked up in the [[astral light]] or in somebody's brain and remembered, I never forget what I once see or read. A bad habit. So much so, that often and unconsciously<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Khiu-tee''': according to [[David Reigle]], the [[Kiu-Te]] (Tib. rGyud-sde) is a section of the "Kangyur" (Tib. bKa'-'gyur), a collection of Tibetan Buddhist sacred literature divided into two kinds, "mDo-sde" (sutras) and "rGyud-sde" (tantras).<br />
* '''ferrotype''' is a tintype, or a positive photograph made by a collodion process on a thin iron plate having a darkened surface.<br />
* '''"Gaudeamus"''' probably refer to "Gaudeamus Igitur" ("So Let Us Rejoice"), a popular academic song in many Western countries, mainly used at university graduation ceremonies. The current Latin lyrics were published in 1781.<br />
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== Page 12 ==<br />
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to myself I string together sentences of stray words and phrases, before my eyes and which may have been used hundred years ago or will be hundred years hence, in relation to quite a different subject. Laziness and real lack of time. The "[[H. P. Blavatsky|Old Lady]]" called me a "brain pirate" and a plagiarist, the other day for using a whole sentence of five lines, which, she is firmly convinced, I must have pilfered from [[Alexander Wilder|Dr. Wilder]]'s brain as three months later, he reproduced it in an essay of his on prophetic intuition. Never had a look into the old philosopher's brain cells. Got it somewhere in a northern current — don't know. Write this for your information as something new for you, I suppose. Thus a child may be born bearing the greatest resemblance and features to another person, thousands of miles off, no connexion to the mother, never seen by her, but whose floating image was impressed upon her soul-memory, during sleep or even waking hours, and reproduced upon the sensitized plate of living flesh she carries in her. Yet, I believe, the lines quoted, were written by [[Alfred, Lord Tennyson|Tennyson]] years ago, and they are published. I hope these disjointed reflections and explanations may be pardoned in one, who, remained for over nine days in his stirrups without dismounting. From Ghalaring-Tcho Lamasery (where your [[The Occult World (book)|Occult World]] was discussed and commented upon) — Heaven save the mark! will you think. I crossed to the Horpa Pa La territory, — "the unexplored regions of Turki tribes" — say your maps ignorant of the fact that there are no tribes there at all — and thence — home. Yes; I am tired, and therefore will close.<br />
<br />
Yours faithfully,<br />
<br />
[[K. H.]]<br />
<br />
In October I will be in Bhutan. I have a favour to ask of you: try and make friends with [[Ross Scott]]. I need him.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* The '''Ghalaring-Tcho Lamasery''' is probably located at Nganglaring Tso, Ngari, in the western part of Xizang (Tibet), close to a large lake called Ngangla Ringco.<br />
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<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
[[A. P. Sinnett]] was on his way to [[Simla, India|Simla]] to join [[H. P. Blavatsky]] and [[A. O. Hume]], where they would discuss the formation of the [[Simla Eclectic Theosophical Society]].<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 2. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
In blue ink, on both sides of six full-sized sheets of thin paper. The script is quite small.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 65.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 20]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._19&diff=36409Mahatma Letter No. 192018-08-05T14:45:45Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = July 6-11, 1881 See [[Mahatma Letter No. 19#Context and background|below]].<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Bombay, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 121 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 19#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 18|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 20|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 51|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 57|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Cover sheet ==<br />
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Received at Bombay on return to India in July 1881.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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Thanks. The little things prove very useful, and I gratefully acknowledge them. You ought to go to Simla. [[Try!|TRY]]. I confess to a weakness on my part to see you do so. We must patiently await the results, as I told you of the Book. The blanks are provoking and "tantalizing" but we cannot go against the inevitable. And as it is always good to mend an error I already did so by presenting the [[The Occult World (book)|Occult World]] to the C----'s notice. Patience, patience.<br />
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Yours, ever<br />
<br />
[[K. H.]]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"The Book"''' refers to [[A. P. Sinnett]]'s first book [[The Occult World (book)|''The Occult World'']].<br />
* '''"the C----'s notice"''' may be referring to the great Chohan or [[Maha Chohan]].<br />
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<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
This letter was in connection with the establishment of the [[Simla Eclectic Theosophical Society|Simla branch]] of the [[Theosophical Society]]. [[H. P. Blavatsky]] had been invited by the [[A. O. Hume|Humes]] to be there and the [[Mahātma|Mahatma]] seems concerned that [[A. P. Sinnett]] also should be present. On p. 156 of [[The Occult World (book)|''The Occult World'']], Sinnett comments that he went to [[Simla, India|Simla]] in August 1881 in connection with this undertaking.<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 3. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
On a single sheet of rippled white paper, in blue ink. The sheet is about 4" X 6" <nowiki>[</nowiki>10.2 X 15.2 cm<nowiki>]</nowiki> in size, folded note style. The capital "P" in "Patience" near the end of the letter is heavy, and the ink has blotted near the top of the sheet where the paper was folded.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 64.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 19]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._18&diff=36408Mahatma Letter No. 182018-08-05T14:41:14Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]] <br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = July 8, 1881 See [[Mahatma Letter No. 18#Context and background|below]].<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Bombay, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 9 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 18#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 17|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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== Cover sheet 1 ==<br />
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IX<br />
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234(a-d)<br><br />
Prior to writing [[The Occult World (book)|Occult World]] '''<nowiki> [Editorial note: These words are crossed out.]</nowiki>'''<br />
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Pri. a Phil<br><br />
from [[K.H.]], first letter rec'd on return to India, July 8th, 1881.<br><br />
Containing rough sketch of planetary evolution<br><br />
Rec'd by me while staying with [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mme B.]] at Bombay for a few days<br />
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* Number 61 penciled at right.<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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Welcome good friend and brilliant author, welcome back! Your letter at hand, and I am happy to see your personal experience with the "Elect" of London proved so successful. But, I foresee, that more than ever now, you will become an incarnate note of interrogation. Beware! If your questions are found premature by the powers that be, instead of receiving my answers in their pristine purity you may find them transformed into yards of drivel. I am too far gone to feel a hand on my throat whenever trenching on the limits of forbidden topics; not enough to avoid feeling myself — uncomfortably so — like a worm of yesterday before our "Rock of Ages" my [[Cho-Khan]]. We must all be blindfolded before we can pass onward; or else, we have to remain outside.<br />
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And now, what about the book? Le quart d'heure de Rabelais is striking, and, finds me, if not quite insolvent, yet quasitrembling at the idea that the first instalment offered may be found below the mark; the price claimed — inadequate with my poor resources; myself led pro bono publico to trespass beyond the terrible — "hitherto shalt thou go, and no further," and the angry wave of the [[Cho-Khan]]'s wrath swamping me blue ink and all! I fondly hope you will not make me lose "my situation."<br />
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Quite so. For, I have a dim notion that you will be very impatient with me. I have a very clear notion that you need not be. It is one of the unfortunate necessities of life that imperial needs do sometimes<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''le quart d’heure de Rabelais''' is a French expression that means it is time to pay the bill; named after a trick the writer used in a restaurant to avoid paying.<br />
* '''pro bono publico''' is a Latin phrase meaning "for the public good," generally used to describe professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. <br />
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force one apparently to ignore the claims of friendship, not to violate one's word, but to put off and lay aside for a while the too impatient expectations of [[neophyte]]s as of inferior importance. One such need that I call imperial is the need of your future welfare; the realization of the dream dreamt by you in company with [[William Stainton Moses|S.M.]] That dream — shall we call it a vision? — was, that you, and [[Anna Kingsford|Mrs. K.]] — why forget the [[Theosophical Society|Theos. Soc.]]? — "are all parts of a large plan for the manifestations of [[occult]] philosophy to the world." Yes; the time must come, and it is not far — when all of you will comprehend aright the apparently contradictory phases of such manifestations; forced by the evidence to reconcile them. The case not being so at present, meanwhile — remember: it is because we are playing a risky game and the stakes are human [[soul]]s that I ask you to possess yours in patience. Bearing in mind that I have to look after your "[[soul]]" and mine too, I propose to do so at whatever cost, even at the risk of being misunderstood by you as I was by [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]]. The work is made the more difficult by my being a lonely labourer in the field, and that, as long as I fail to prove to my superiors that you, at least — mean business; that you — are in right good earnest. As I am refused higher help, so will you fail to easily find help in that Society<br />
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in which you move, and which you try to move. Nor will you find, for a certain time much joy in those directly concerned. Our [[H. P. Blavatsky|old lady]] is weak and her nerves are worked to a fiddle string; so is her jaded brain. [[H. S. Olcott|H.S.O.]] is far away — in exile — fighting his way back to salvation — compromised more than you imagine by his Simla indiscretions — and establishing theosoph. schools. [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]] — who once promised to become a champion fighter in that Battle of Light against Darkness — now preserves a kind of armed neutrality wondrous to behold. Having made the mirific discovery that we are a body of antidiluvian Jesuits of fossiles — self-crowned with oratorial flourishes, he rested but to accuse us of intercepting his letters to [[H. P. Blavatsky|H.P.B.]]! However, he finds some comfort by thinking "what a jolly argument he shall have elsewhere (Angel Linnean ornithological Society, perhaps) with the entity which is represented by the name "[[Koothoomi]]." Verily has our very intellectual, once mutual friend, a flood of words at his command which would suffice to float a troop ship of oratorious fallacies. Nevertheless — I respect him. . . . But who next? [[C. C. Massey]]? But then he is the hapless parent of about half a dozen of illegitimate brats. He is a most charming, devoted friend; a profound [[Mysticism|mystic]]; a generous, noble minded man, a gentleman — as they say — every inch of him; tried as gold; every requisite for a student of [[occultism]], but none for an [[adept]], my good friend. Be it as it may, his <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''his <nowiki>[</nowiki>Olcott's<nowiki>]</nowiki> Simla indiscretions''' refers to the publication of his article "A Day with Madame Blavatsky" where he mentioned the names of several prominent Englishmen present during the [[phenomena]] at Simla. See [[Mahatma Letter No. 5]]<br />
* '''Establishing theosoph. schools'''. [[H. S. Olcott]] was in Sri Lanka (a [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] country then dominated by [[Christianity|Christians]]), establishing [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] schools. His work was remarkable and today he is regarded as a national hero in that country.<br />
* '''mirific''' means miraculous.<br />
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secret is his own, and I have no right to divulge it. [[George Wyld|Dr. Wyld]]? — a christian to the back bone. [[Henry J. Hood|Hood]]? — a sweet nature, as you say; a dreamer, and an idealist in [[Mysticism|mystic]] matters, yet — no worker. [[William Stainton Moses|S. Moses]]? Ah! here we are. [[William Stainton Moses|S.M.]] has nearly upset the [[Theosophy|theosoph.]] ark set afloat three years back: and, he will do his level best to do it over again -— our [[Imperator]] notwithstanding. You doubt? Listen.<br />
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His is a weird, rare nature. His [[siddhis|occult psychical energies]] are tremendous; but they have lain dormant, folded up within him and unknown to himself, when, some eight years or so, [[Imperator]] threw his eye upon him and bid his spirit soar. Since then, a new life has been in him, a dual existence, but his nature could not be changed. Brought up as a theological student, his mind was devoured by doubts. Earlier, he betook himself to Mount Athos, where, immuring himself in a monastery, he studied Greek Eastern religion, and it is there that he was first noticed by his "[[Spirit guide]]" (!!) Of course, Greek casuistry failed to solve his doubts, and he hurried on to Rome, — popery satisfying him as little. From thence he wandered to Germany with the same negative results. Giving up dry christian theology he did not give up its presumable founder with all that. He needed an ideal and he found it in the latter. For him [[Jesus]] is a reality, a once embodied, now a disembodied Spirit, who, "furnished him with an evidence of his personal identity" — he thinks, — in no less a degree than other "Spirits" — [[Imperator]] among the rest — have. Nevertheless, neither the religions of [[Jesus]] nor yet his words, as recorded in the Bible and believed by [[William Stainton Moses|S.M.]] authentic — are fully accepted by that restless Spirit of his. [[Imperator]], on whom the same fate devolved later on, fares no better. His mind is too positive. Once impressed it becomes easier to efface characters engraved upon titanium than impressions made upon his brain.<br />
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Whenever under the influence of [[Imperator]] — he is all alive to the realities of [[Occultism]], and the superiority of [[Occult Science|our Science]] over [[Spiritualism]]. As soon as left alone and under the pernicious guidance of those he firmly believes having identified with disembodied [[Soul]]s — all becomes confusion again! His mind will yield to no suggestions, no reasonings but his own, and those are all for [[Spiritualism|Spiritualistic]] theories. When the old theological fetters had dropped off, he imagined himself a free man. Some months later, he became the humble slave and tool of the "[[Spirit Guides|Spirits]]"! It is but when standing face to face with his inner Self that he realizes the truth that there is something higher and nobler than the prittle-prattle of pseudo Spirits. It was at such a moment that he heard for the first the voice of [[Imperator]], and it was, as he himself puts it: "as the voice of God speaking to his inner Self." That voice has made itself familiar to him for years, and yet he very often heeds it not. A simple query: Were [[Imperator|Imper.]] what he believes, nay — knows him to be, he thinks, — would not he have made [[S. Moses|S.M.]]'s will completely subservient to his own by this time? Alone the [[adept]]s, i.e. the embodied spirits — are forbidden by our wise and intransgressible laws to completely subject to themselves another and a weaker will, — that of free born man. The latter mode of proceeding is the favourite one resorted to by the "[[Brothers of the Shadow]]," the Sorcerers, the [[Elementary]] Spooks, and, as an isolated exception — by the highest [[Planetary Spirit]]s, those, who can no longer err. But these appear on Earth but<br />
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at the origin of every new [[Root-Race|human kind]]; at the junction of, and close of the two ends of the [[Cycle|great cycle]]. And, they remain with man no longer than the time required for the eternal truths they teach to impress themselves so forcibly upon the plastic minds of the new races as to warrant them from being lost or entirely forgotten in ages hereafter, by the forthcoming generations. The mission of the [[planetary Spirit]] is but to strike the KEY NOTE OF TRUTH. Once he has directed the vibration of the latter to run its course uninterruptedly along the catenation of that [[Root-Race|race]] and to the end of the [[cycle]] — the denizen of the highest inhabited [[sphere]] disappears from the surface of our planet — till the following "resurrection of flesh." The vibrations of the Primitive Truth are what your philosophers name "innate ideas."<br />
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[[Imperator]], then, had repeatedly told him that "in [[occultism]] alone he should seek for, and will find a phase of truth not yet known to him." But that did not prevent [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] at all from turning his back upon [[occultism]] whenever a theory of it clashed with one of his own preconceived [[Spiritualism|Spiritualistic]] ideas. To him [[mediumship]] appeared as the Charter of his [[Soul]]'s freedom, as resurrection from Spiritual death. He had been allowed to enjoy it only so far as it was necessary for the confirmation of his faith: promised that the abnormal would yield to the normal; ordered to prepare<br />
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for the time when the Self within him will become conscious of its spiritual, independent existence, will act and talk face to face with its Instructor, and will lead its life in Spiritual Spheres normally and without external or internal [[mediumship]] at all. And yet once conscious of what he terms "external Spirit action" he recognised no more hallucination from truth, the false from the real: confounding at times [[Elementals]] and [[Elementaries]], embodied from disembodied Spirit, though he had been oft enough told of, and warned against "those spirits that hover about the Earth's sphere" — by his "Voice of God." With all that he firmly believes to have invariably acted under [[Imperator|Imper]]'s direction, and that such spirits as have come to him came by his "[[Spirit Guides|guide]]'s" permission. In such a case H.P.B. was there by Imper's consent? And how do you reconcile the following contradictions. Ever since 1876, acting under direct orders, she tried to awake him to the reality of what was going on around and in him. That she must have acted either according to or against [[Imperator|Imper]]'s will — he must know, as in the latter case she might boast of being stronger, more powerful than his "[[Spirit Guides|guide]]" who never yet protested against the intrusion. Now what happens? Writing to her from Isle of Wight, in 1876, of a vision lasting for over 48 consecutive hours he had, and during which he walked about, talked as usual, but did not preserve the slightest remembrance of anything external, he asks her to tell him whether it was<br />
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a vision or a hallucination. Why did he not ask [[Imperator|+ I-r]]? "You can tell me for you were there," he says. . . . "You — changed, yet yourself — if you have a Self. . . . I suppose you have, but into that I do not pry." . . . At another time he saw her in his own library looking at him, approaching and giving him some [[Freemasonry|masonic]] signs of the Lodge he knows. He admits that he "saw her as clearly as he saw [[C. C. Massey|Massey]] — who was there." He saw her on several other occasions, and sometimes knowing it was [[H. P. Blavatsky|H.P.B.]] he could not recognise her. "You seem to me from your appearance as from your letters so different at times, the mental attitudes so various, that it is quite conceivable to me, as I am authoritatively told, that you are a bundle of Entities. . . . I have absolute faith in you." In every letter of his he clamoured for a "living [[Adept|Brother]]." To her unequivocal statement that there was one already having charge of him, he strongly objected. When helped to get free from his too material body, absent from it for hours and days sometimes his empty machine run during that period from afar and by external, living influence, — as soon as back, he would begin labouring under the irradicable impression of having been all that time the vehicle for another intelligence, a disembodied not an embodied Spirit, truth never once flashing across his mind. "[[Imperator]]," he wrote to her, "traverses your idea about [[mediumship]]. <br />
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He says there should be no real antagonism between the [[medium]] and the [[adept]]." Had he used the word "[[Seer]]" instead of "[[medium]]" the idea would have been rendered more correctly, for a man becomes rarely an [[adept]] without being born a natural [[Seer]]. Then again. In September, 1875, he knew nothing of the [[Brothers of the Shadow]] — our greatest, most cruel, and — why not confess — our most potential Enemies. In that year he actually asked the [[H. P. Blavatsky|old lady]] whether [[Edward Bulwer-Lytton|Bulwer]] had been eating underdone pork chops and dreaming when he described "that hideous [[Dweller of the Threshold]]." "Make yourself ready," she answered — "in about twelve months more you will have to face and fight with them." In October, 1876, they had begun their work upon him. "I am fighting" — he wrote — "a hand to hand battle with all the legions of the Fiend for the past three weeks. My nights are made hideous with their torments, temptations and foul suggestions. I see them all around, glaring at me, gabbling, howling, grinning! Every form of filthy suggestion, of bewildering doubt, of mad and shuddering fear is upon me . . . I can understand [[Zanoni (book)|Zanoni]]'s [[Dweller of the Threshold|Dweller]] now . . . I have not wavered yet . . . and their temptations are fainter, the presence less near, the horror less. . . ."<br />
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* '''Her Superior''' is referring to [[H. P. Blavatsky]]'s Master, [[Mahatma]] [[Morya]].<br />
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him to wave his hand across the ocean, lest [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] should die, and the [[Theosophical Society|Theos. Soc.]] lose its best subject. "He must be tried" was the answer. He imagines that [[Imperator|+ Imper.]] had sent the tempters because he [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] was one of those Thomases who must see; he would not believe that [[Imperator|+]] could not help their coming. Watch over him he did — he could not drive them away unless the victim, the [[neophyte]] himself, proved the strongest. But did these human fiends in league with the [[Elementaries]] prepare him for a new life as he thought they would? Embodiments of those adverse influences which beset the inner Self struggling to be free and to progress, they would never have returned had he successfully conquered them by asserting his own independent WILL, by giving up his [[mediumship]], his passive will. Yet they did.<br />
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You say of + — "[[Imperator]] — is certainly not his ([[Stainton Moses|S.M.]]'s) [[Astral Body|astral soul]], and assuredly, also, he is not from a lower World than our own — not an [[elementary|earth-bound Spirit]]." No one ever said he was anything of the kind. [[H. P. Blavatsky|H.P.B.]] never told you he was [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]]'s [[Astral Body|astral soul]], but that what he often mistook for [[Imperator|+]] was his own [[higher Self]], his divine [[atman]] — not [[linga Sarira]] or [[astral Soul]], or the [[Kama rupa]] the independent [[doppelganger]] — again. [[Imperator|+]] cannot contradict himself; [[Imperator|+]] cannot be ignorant of the truth, so often misrepresented by [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]]; [[Imperator|+]] cannot preach the [[occult Science]]s and then defend [[mediumship]], not even in that highest form<br />
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described by his pupil. [[Mediumship]] is abnormal. When in further development the abnormal has given way to the natural, the [[Spirit Guide|controls]] are shaken off, and passive obedience is no longer required, then the medium learns to use his will, to exercise his own power, and becomes an [[adept]]. The process is one of development and the [[neophyte]] has to go to the end. As long as he is subject to occasional trance — he cannot be an [[adept]]. [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] passes the two-thirds of his life in Trance.<br />
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To your question — Is [[Imperator]] "a [[Planetary Spirit]]" and "may a [[Planetary Spirit]] have been humanly incarnated," I will first say that there can be no [[Planetary Spirit]] that was not once material or what you call human. When our great [[Buddha]] — the patron of all the [[adept]]s, the reformer and the codifier of the [[occultism|occult system]], reached first [[Nirvana]] on Earth, he became a [[Planetary Spirit]]; i.e. — his spirit could at one and the same time rove the interstellar spaces in full consciousness, and continue at will on Earth in his original and individual body. For the divine Self had so completely disfranchised itself from matter that it could create at will an inner substitute for itself, and leaving it in the human form for days, weeks, sometimes years, affect in no wise by the change either the vital principle or the physical mind of its body. By the way, that is the highest form of adeptship man can hope for on our planet. But it is as rare as the [[Buddha]]s themselves, the last [[Khobilgan]] who reached it being <br />
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[[Tsongkhapa|Sang-Ko-Pa]] of Kokonor (XIV Century), the reformer of esoteric as well as of vulgar Lamaism. Many are those who "break through the egg-shell," few who, once out are able to exercise their [[Nirvana-Mastaka|Nirvva namastaka]] fully, when completely out of the body. Conscious life in Spirit is as difficult for some natures as swimming is for some bodies. Though the human frame is lighter in its bulk than water, and that every person is born with the faculty, so few develop in themselves the art of treading water that death by drowning is the most frequent of accidents. The [[planetary Spirit]] of that kind (the [[Buddha]] like) can pass at will into other bodies — of more or less etherialised matter, inhabiting other regions of the Universe. There are many other grades and orders, but there is no separate and eternally constituted order of Planetary Spirits. Whether [[Imperator]] is a "planetary" embodied or disembodied, whether he is an [[adept]] in flesh or out of it, I am not at liberty to say, any more than he would himself to tell [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] who I am, or may be, or even who [[H. P. Blavatsky|H.P.B.]] is. If he himself chooses to be silent on that subject S.M. has no right to ask me. But then our friend, S.M. ought to know. Nay: he firmly believes he does. For in his intercourse with that personage there came a time when not satisfied with [[Imperator|+]] assurances, or content to respect his wishes that he, Imperator & Co. should remain impersonal and unknown save by their assumed titles, S.M. wrestled with him, Jacob-like, for months on the point of<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Sang-Ko-Pa''' refers to [[Tsongkhapa]], the famous teacher of Tibetan Buddhism.<br />
* '''"Break through the egg-shell"''' is a quotation from ''The New American Cyclopaedia'', vol. 4, 1869 and 1870, p. 66.<br />
* '''Nirvva namastaka''' (wrongly transcribed as ''nirira namastaka'' in the printed editions) is a misspelling of the term [[Nirvana-Mastaka|''nirvāṇa-mastaka'']], which can be translated as "liberation."<br />
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that spirit's identity. It was the Biblical flim-flam all over again. "I pray thee tell me thy name" — and though answered: "Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name?" — what's in a name? — he allowed [[Stainton Moses|S.M.]] to label him like a portmanteau. And so, he is at rest now, for be has "seen God face to face"; who, after wrestling, and seeing that he prevailed not, said "let me go" and was forced to come to the terms offered by Jacob S. Moses. I strongly advise you for your own information to put that question to your friend. Why should he be "anxiously awaiting" my reply, since he knows all about [[Imperator|+]]? Did not that "Spirit" tell him a story one day, — a queer story, something what he may not divulge about himself and forbid him ever mentioning it? What more does he want? That fact, that he seeks to learn through me the true nature of [[Imperator|+]], is a pretty good proof in itself that he is not as sure of his identity as he believes he is, or rather would make believe he is. Or is the question a blind? — which?<br />
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I may answer you, what I said to [[G. H. Fechner]] one day, when he wanted to know the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] view on what he had written — "You are right; . . . 'every diamond, every crystal, every plant and star has its own individual [[soul]], besides man and animal . . .' and, 'there is a hierarchy of [[soul]]s from the lowest forms of matter up to the [[World Soul]]' . . .; but, you are mistaken when adding to the above the assurance that 'the spirits of the<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''the Biblical flim-flam''' quotations are from Genesis 32:29, when Jacob wrestled with an angel (or with Yahweh) and was given the name Israel. Flim-flam can refer to nonsense or to deception.<br />
* '''Portmanteau''' is a piece of luggage; it can also be a combination of two (or more) words or morphemes into one new word.<br />
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departed hold direct psychic communication with [[Soul]]s that are still connected with a human body' — for, they do not." The relative position of the inhabited worlds in our Solar System would alone preclude such a possibility. For I trust you have given up the queer idea — a natural result of early [[Christianity|Xtian]] training — that there can possibly be human intelligences inhabiting purely spiritual regions? You will then as readily understand the fallacy of the [[Christianity|christians]] — who would burn immaterial [[soul]]s in a material physical [[hell]] — as the mistake of the more educated [[spiritualism|spiritualists]], who lullaby themselves with the thought that any other but the denizens of the two worlds immediately interlinked with our own can possibly communicate with them? However etherial and purified of gross matter they may be, the pure Spirits are still subject to the physical and universal laws of matter. They cannot if even they would span the abyss that separates their worlds from ours. They can be visited in Spirit, their Spirit cannot descend and reach us. They attract, they cannot be attracted, their Spiritual polarity being an insuperable difficulty in the way. (By-the-bye you must not trust [[Isis Unveiled (book)|Isis]] literally. The book is but a tentative effort to divert the attention of the [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] from their preconceptions to the true state of things. The author was made to hint and point out in the true direction, to say what things are not, not what they are. Proof reader helping, a few real mistakes have crept in as on page 1, chapter 1, volume 1, where divine Essence is made emanating from Adam instead of the reverse.)<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Xtian''' is an abbreviation for "Christian"<br />
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Once fairly started upon that subject, I will endeavour to explain to you still clearer where lies the impossibility. You will thus be answered in regard to both [[Planetary Spirits]] and — [[Spirit Guides|seance room "Spirits."]]<br />
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The cycle of intelligent existences commences at the highest [[Spheres|worlds or planets]] — the term "highest" meaning here the most spiritually perfect. Evoluting from [[cosmic matter]] — which is [[akasa]], the primeval not the secondary plastic medium, or [[Ether]] of Science instinctively suspected, unproven as the rest — man first evolutes from this matter in its most sublimated state, appearing at the threshold of [[Eternity]] as a perfectly Etherial — not Spiritual Entity, say — a [[Planetary Spirit]]. He is but one remove from the universal and Spiritual World Essence — the [[Anima Mundi]] of the Greeks, or that which humanity in its spiritual decadence has degraded into a mythical personal God. Hence, at that stage, the Spirit — man is at best an active Power, an immutable, therefore an unthinking [[Principle]] (the term "immutable" being again used here but to denote that state for the time being, the immutability applying here but to the inner principle which will vanish and disappear as soon as the speck of the material in him will start on its [[Cyclic Evolution|cyclic work of Evolution]] and transformation). In his subsequent descent, and in proportion of the increase of [[matter]] he will assert more and more his activity. Now, the congeries of the star-worlds (including our own planet) inhabited by intelligent beings may be likened to an orb or rather an epicycloid formed of rings like a [[Chains and Rounds|chain]] — worlds inter-linked together, the totality<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
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representing an imaginary endless ring, or circle. The progress of man throughout the whole — from its starting to its closing points meeting on the highest point of its circumference — is what we call the Maha Yug or [[Chains and Rounds|Great Cycle]], the Kuklos, whose head is lost in a crown of [[Absolute|absolute Spirit]], and its lowest point of circumference in absolute matter — to viz. the point of cessation of action of the active principle. If using a more familiar term we call the [[Chains and Rounds|Great Cycle]] the [[Macrokosm]] and its component parts or the inter-linked [[Chains and Rounds#Globes|star worlds]] [[Microkosms]], the [[occultism|occultists]]' meaning in representing each of the latter as perfect copies of the former will become evident. The Great is the Prototype of the smaller [[Law of Cycles|cycles]]: and as such, each [[Chains and Rounds#Globes|star world]] has in its turn its own [[Cyclic Evolution|cycle of Evolution]] which starts with a purer and ends with a grosser or more material nature. As they descend, each world presents itself naturally more and more shadowy, becoming at the "antipodes" absolute [[matter]]. Propelled by the irresistible [[Law of Cycles|cyclic impulse]] the [[Planetary Spirit]] has to descend before he can reascend. On his way he has to pass through the whole ladder of [[Evolution]], missing no rung, to halt at every [[Chains and Rounds#Globes|star world]] as he would at a station; and, besides the unavoidable cycle of that particular and every respective [[Chains and Rounds#Root-Races and World-Periods|star world]] — to perform in it his own "life-cycle" to, viz.: returning and [[Reincarnation|reincarnating]] as many times as he fails to complete his round of life in it, as he<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''viz.''' is an abbreviation the adverb videlicet, derived from Latin, meaning "namely", "that is to say", or "as follows".<br />
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dies on it before reaching the age of reason as correctly stated in [[Isis Unveiled (book)|Isis]]. Thus far [[Anna Kingsford|Mrs. Kingsford]]'s idea that the human [[Ego]] is being [[Reincarnation|reincarnated]] in several successive human bodies is the true one. As to its being [[Reincarnation#Transmigration into lower forms|reborn in animal forms]] after human incarnation it is the result of her loose way of expressing things and ideas. Another <span style="border-bottom:3px double #000;">woman</span> — all over again. Why, she confounds "[[Soul]] and [[Spirit]]," refuses to discriminate between the animal and the spiritual [[Ego]]s the [[Jivatma]] (or [[Linga-Sharir]]) and the [[Kama-Rupa]] (or Atma-Rupa), two as different things as body and mind, and — mind and thought are! That is what happens. After circling, so to say, along the [[Cyclic Evolution|arc of the cycle]], circling along and within it (the daily and yearly rotation of the Earth is as good an illustration as any) when the Spirit-man reaches our [[Chains and Rounds#Globes|planet]], which is one of the lowest, having lost at every station some of the etherial and acquired an increase of material nature, both spirit and matter have become pretty much equilibrized in him. But then, he has the Earth's cycle to perform; and, as in the process of [[Cyclic Evolution|involution and evolution downward]], matter is ever striving to stifle spirit, when arrived to the lowest point of his pilgrimage, the once pure [[Planetary Spirit]] will be found dwindled to — what Science agrees to call a primitive or Primordial man — amidst a nature<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"Thus far Anna Kingsford..."''' The text beginning with these words and ending with the sentence '''"That is what happens"''' has been crossed out in the original letter with the blue ink typically used by the Master. Given that this section has a disparaging remark about women and a confusion of terms (Jivatma corresponds to atma-rupa and kama-rupa to linga-sharira) it is likely a misstatement introduced by the disciple precipitating the letter.<br />
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as primordial — speaking geologically, for physical nature keeps pace with the physiological as well as the spiritual man, in her [[Cyclic Evolution|cyclic]] career. At that point the great Law begins its work of selection. Matter found entirely divorced from spirit is thrown over into the still lower worlds — into the sixth "<span style="border-bottom:3px double #000;">gati</span>" or "way of rebirth" of the vegetable and mineral worlds, and of the primitive animal forms. From thence, matter ground over in the workshop of nature proceeds soulless back to its Mother-Fount; while the [[Ego]]s purified of their dross are enabled to resume their progress once more onward. It is here, then, that the laggard [[Ego]]s perish by the millions. It is the solemn moment of the "survival of the fittest," the annihilation of those unfit. It is but matter (or material man) which is compelled by its own weight to descend to the very bottom of the "[[circle of necessity]]" to there assume animal form; as to the winner of that race throughout the worlds — the [[Ego#Spiritual ego|Spiritual Ego]], he will ascend from star to star, from one world to another, circling onward to rebecome the once pure [[planetary Spirit]], then higher still, to finally reach its first starting point, and from thence — to merge into MYSTERY. No [[adept]] has ever penetrated beyond the veil of [[Cosmic Matter|primitive Kosmic matter]]. The highest, the most perfect vision is limited to the universe of Form and Matter.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Sixth gati'''. In Buddhism, the realm of desire (kama-dhatu) contains five (or sometimes six) domains called "gati," each with its own inhabitants:<br />
:1. Devas or gods; 2. Manusyas or humans; 3. Tiryaks or animals; 4. Pretas or hungry ghosts; 5. Narakas or hell beings.<br />
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But my explanation does not end here. You want to know why it is deemed supremely difficult if not utterly impossible for pure disembodied Spirits to communicate with men through [[mediumship|mediums]] or Phantomosophy. I say, because: —<br />
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(a) On account of the antagonistic atmospheres respectively surrounding these [[planes|worlds]];<br />
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(b) Of the entire dissimilarity of physiological and spiritual conditions; and —<br />
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(c) Because that [[Chains and Rounds|chain of worlds]] I have just been telling you about, is not only an epicycloid but an elliptical orbit of existences, having, as every ellipse, not one but two points — two foci, which can never approach each other; Man being at one focus of it and pure Spirit at the other.<br />
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To this you might object. I can neither help it, nor change the fact, but there is still another and far mightier impediment. Like a rosary composed of white and black beads alternating with each other, so that concatenation of worlds is made up of [[worlds of causes|worlds of CAUSES]] and [[worlds of effects|worlds of EFFECTS]], the latter — the direct result produced by the former. Thus it becomes evident that every sphere of Causes and our Earth is one — is not only inter-linked with, and surrounded by, but actually separated from its nearest neighbour — the higher sphere of Causality — by an impenetrable atmosphere (in its spiritual sense) of effects bordering on, and even inter-linking, never mixing with — the next sphere: for one is active, the other — passive, the [[world of causes]] positive, [[world of effects|that of effects]] — negative. This passive resistance can be overcome but under conditions, of which your most learned [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] have not the faintest idea. All movement is, so to say polar. It is very difficult to convey my meaning to you at this point; but I will go to the end. I am aware of my failure to bring before you these — to us — axiomatical truths — in any other<br />
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form but that of a simple logical postulate — if so much — they being capable of absolute and unequivocal demonstration, but to the highest [[Seer]]s. But, I'll give you food for thinking if nothing else.<br />
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The intermediary spheres, being but the projected shadows of the [[worlds of causes|Worlds of Causes]] — are negatived by the last. They are the great halting places, the stations in which the new Self-Conscious [[Ego]]s to be — the self-begotten progeny of the old and disembodied Egos of our planet — are [[Gestation|gestated]]. Before the new phoenix, re-born of the ashes of its parent, can soar higher, to a better, more spiritual, and [[Devachan|perfect world]] — still a world of matter — it has to pass through the process of a new birth, so to say; and, as on our earth, where the two-thirds of infants are either still-born or die in infancy, so in our "[[world of effects]]." On earth it is the physiological and mental defects, the sins of the progenitors which are visited upon the issue: in that land of shadows, the new and yet unconscious [[Devachan#Devachanic ego|Ego-foetus]] becomes the just victim of the transgressions of its old Self, whose [[karma]] — merit and demerit — will alone weave out its future destiny. In that world, my good friend, we find but unconscious, self-acting, ex-human machines, souls in their transition state, whose dormant faculties and individuality lie as a butterfly in its chrysalis; and [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] would yet have them talk sense! Caught at times, into the vortex of the abnormal "[[mediumship|mediumistic]]" current, they become the unconscious echoes of thoughts and ideas crystallized around those present. Every positive, well-directed mind is capable of neutralizing such secondary effects in a seance room. The world below ours is worse yet. The former is harmless at least; it is more sinned against by being disturbed, than<br />
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sinning; the latter allowing the retention of full consciousness as being a hundred-fold more material, is positively dangerous. The notions of [[hell]]s and [[purgatory]], of [[paradise]]s and resurrections are all caricatured, distorted echoes of the primeval one Truth, taught humanity in the infancy of its races by every First Messenger — the [[Planetary Spirit]] mentioned on the reverse of page the third — and whose remembrance lingered in the memory of man as [[Elu]] of the Chaldees, [[Osiris]] the Egyptian, [[Vishnu]], the first [[Buddha]]s and so on.<br />
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The lower [[world of effects]] is the sphere of such distorted Thoughts; of the most sensual conceptions, and pictures; of anthropomorphic deities, the out-creations of their creators, the sensual human minds of people who have never out-grown their brutehood on earth. Remembering [[Thought-forms|thoughts are things]] — have tenacity, coherence, and life, — that they are real entities — the rest will become plain. Disembodied — the creator is attracted naturally to its creation and creatures; sucked in — by the Maelstrom dug out by his own hands. . . . But I must pause, for volumes would hardly suffice to explain all that was said by me in this letter.<br />
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In reference to your wonder that the views of the three [[Mysticism|mystics]] "are far from being identical," what does the fact prove? Were they instructed by disembodied, pure, and wise Spirits — even by those of one remove from our earth on the higher plane — would not the teachings be identical? The question arising: "May not Spirits as well as men differ in ideas?"<br />
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* A '''maelstrom''' is a very powerful whirlpool; a large, swirling body of water.<br />
* '''The three mystics'''. According to Daniel Caldwell, this probably refers to [[Stainton Moses]], [[Edward Maitland]], and [[Anna Kingsford]], who were mediums and clairvoyants.<br />
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Well, then their teaching — aye, of the highest of them since they are the "[[Spirit Guides|guides]]" of the three great London [[Seer]]s — will not be more authoritative than those of mortal men. "But, they may belong to different [[sphere]]s?" Well; if in the different [[sphere]]s contradictory doctrines are propounded, these doctrines cannot contain the Truth, for Truth is One, and cannot admit of diametrically opposite views; and pure Spirits who see it as it is, with the veil of [[matter]] entirely withdrawn from it — cannot err. Now, if we allow of different aspects or portions of the Whole Truth being visible to different agencies or intelligences, each under various conditions, as for example various portions of the one landscape develop themselves to various persons, at various distances and from various standpoints — if we admit the fact of various or different agencies (individual [[Brother]]s for instance) endeavouring to develop the [[Ego]]s of different individuals, without subjecting entirely their wills to their own (as it is forbidden) but by availing themselves of their physical, moral, and intellectual idiosyncracies; if we add to this the countless kosmical influences which distort and deflect all efforts to achieve definite purposes: if we remember, moreover, the direct hostility of the [[Brethren of the Shadow]] always on the watch to perplex and haze the [[neophyte]]'s brain, I think we shall have no difficulty in understanding how even a definite spiritual advance may to a certain extent lead different individuals to apparently different conclusions and theories.<br />
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Having confessed to you that I had no right to interfere<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''The three great London Seers'''. According to Daniel Caldwell, this probably refers to [[Stainton Moses]], [[Edward Maitland]], and [[Anna Kingsford]], who were mediums and clairvoyants.<br />
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with [[Imperator]]'s secrets and plans, I must say that so far, however, he has proved the wisest of us. Had our policy been the same, had I, for instance allowed you to infer and then believe (without stating anything positive myself) that I was a "disembodied [[angel]]" — a Spirit of pellucid electroidal essence, from the Super-Stellar phantasmatical zone — we would both be happier. You — you would not have worried your head as to "whether agencies of that sort will always remain necessary" and I — would not find myself under the disagreeable necessity of having to refuse a friend a "personal interview and direct communication." You might have implicitly believed anything coming from me; and I would have felt less responsible for you before my "GUIDES." However, time will show what may or may not be done in that direction. The book is out, and we have to patiently wait for the results of that first serious shot at the enemy. Art Magic and [[Isis Unveiled (book)|Isis]] emanating from women and as it was believed, [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] — could never hope for a serious hearing. Its effects will at first be disastrous enough, for the gun will recoil and the shot rebounding will strike the author and his humble hero, who are not likely to flinch. But it will also graze the [[H. P. Blavatsky|old lady]], reviving in the Anglo-Indian press last year's outcry. The Thersites and literary Philistines will go hard to work, the flings, squibs and coups de bec falling thick upon her — though aimed at you alone, as the Editor of the [[Pioneer]] is far from being beloved by his colleagues of<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''The book is out''' refers to the publication of [[A. P. Sinnett]]'s first book [[The Occult World (book)|''The Occult World'']].<br />
* '''Art Magic''' refers to ''Art Magic: Or Mundane, Sub Mundane, and Super Mundane Spiritism'', first published in 1876. [[Spiritualism|Spiritualist]] [[Emma Hardinge Britten]] announced that the book was written by ‘an adept’ of her acquaintance, Louis Constant, for whom she was ‘acting as translator and secretary’.<br />
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India. [[Spiritualism|Spiritualistic]] papers have already opened the campaign in London and the Yankee editors of the Organs of "Angels" will follow suit, the heavenly "[[Spirit Guides|Controls]]" ejaculating their choicest scandalum magnatum. Some men of science — least of all their admirers — the parasites who bask in the sun and dream they are themselves that sun — are not likely to forgive you the sentence — really much too flattering — which ranges the comprehension of a poor, unknown [[Hinduism|Hindoo]]] "So far beyond the science and philosophy of Europe, that only the broadest minded representatives of either will be able to realize the existence of such powers in man, etc." But what of that? It was all foreseen and was to be expected. When the first hum and ding-dong of adverse criticism is hushed, thoughtful men will read and ponder over the book, as they have never pondered over the most scientific efforts of [[Alfred Russel Wallace|Wallace]] and [[William Crookes|Crookes]] to reconcile modern science with Spirits, and — the little seed will grow and thrive.<br />
<br />
In the meantime I do not forget my promises to you. As soon as installed in your sleeping chamber I will try and. . . . [Here three lines in the original letter have been completely erased apparently by the writer thereof. — ED].<br />
<br />
I hope to be permitted to do so much for you. If, for generations we have "shut out the world from the Knowledge of our Knowledge," it is on account of its absolute unfitness; and if, notwithstanding proofs given, it still refuses yielding to evidence, then will we at the End of this [[cycle]] retire<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/18-25_6130.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/18-25_6130_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 25 ==<br />
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into solitude and our kingdom of silence once more. . . . We have offered to exhume the primeval strata of man's being, his basic nature, and lay bare the wonderful complications of his inner Self — something never to be achieved by physiology or even psychology in its ultimate expression — and demonstrate it scientifically. It matters not to them, if the excavations be so deep, the rocks so rough and sharp, that in diving into that, to them, fathomless ocean, most of us perish in the dangerous exploration; for it is we who were the divers and the pioneers and the men of science have but to reap where we have sown. It is our mission to plunge and bring the pearls of Truth to the surface; theirs — to clean and set them into scientific jewels. And, if they refuse to touch the ill-shapen, oyster-shell, insisting that there is, nor cannot be any precious pearl inside it, then shall we once more wash our hands of any responsibility before human-kind. For countless generations hath the [[adept]] builded a fane of imperishable rocks, a giant's Tower of INFINITE THOUGHT, wherein the Titan dwelt, and will yet, if need be, dwell alone, emerging from it but at the end of every [[cycle]], to invite the elect of mankind to co-operate with him and help in his turn enlighten superstitious man. And we will go on in that periodical work of ours; we will not allow ourselves to be baffled in our philanthropic attempts until that day when the foundations of a new continent of thought are so firmly built that no amount of opposition and ignorant malice guided by the [[Brethren of the Shadow]] will be found to prevail. <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 26 ==<br />
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But until that day of final triumph someone has to be sacrificed — though we accept but voluntary victims. The ungrateful task did lay her low and desolate in the ruins of misery, misapprehension, and isolation: but she will have her reward in the hereafter for we never were ungrateful. As regards the [[Adept]] — not one of my kind, good friend, but far higher — you might have closed your book with those lines of [Alfred, Lord] Tennyson's "Wakeful Dreamer" — you knew him not —<br />
<br />
"How could ye know him? Ye were yet within<br />
The narrower circle; he had well nigh reached<br />
The last, which, with a region of white flame,<br />
Pure without heat, into a larger air<br />
Up-burning, and an ether of black blue,<br />
Invests and ingirds all other lives. . . ."<br />
<br />
I'll close. Remember then on the 17th of July and. . . . [Here again six lines in the original have been deleted. — ED.] . . . ., to you will become the sublimest of realities.<br />
<br />
Farewell.<br />
<br />
Sincerely yours,<br />
<br />
[[K. H.]]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
<br />
{{Col-end}}<br />
<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
This letter marks the beginning of the real teachings from the [[Mahātma|Mahatma]], although a good deal of it is concerned with a prominent English member of the [[Theosophical Society]].<br />
<br />
[[A. P. Sinnett]] has designated [[July 8]] as the date of receipt of this letter. However, in [[The Theosophist (periodical)|''The Theosophist'']] Supplement of the August 1881 issue, [[Tookaram Tatya]], secretary of the Bombay Theosophical Society, in a report dated [[July 7]], 1881, states that Sinnett arrived in Bombay on [[July 4]] and, the next evening, [[July 5]], gave a talk in which he said clearly that on that very morning, after breakfast, while he was sitting at a table in full light of day, he received a letter from his “illustrious Friend [[Koot Hoomi]].”<br />
<br />
Sinnett’s description of how the letter was received is extremely interesting. It is found in [[The Occult World (book)|''The Occult World'']] (pp.154-55, 9th ed.). It is not in the first edition, as that had already been published; it was included in the second edition under the heading “Later Occult [[Phenomena]].” In the 9th edition, the chapter is headed “Conclusion.”<br />
<br />
Sinnett had written to the Mahatma before leaving London and was a little disappointed that no reply was waiting for him in Bombay. However, the morning following his arrival, when he and [[H. P. Blavatsky]] had finished breakfast, he was sitting talking to her when the letter came. This is his description:<br />
<br />
:We were sitting at different sides of a large square table in the middle of the room, and the full daylight was shining. There was no one else in the room. Suddenly, down upon the table before me, but to my right hand, Madame Blavatsky being to my left, there fell a thick letter. It fell “out of nothing” so to speak; it was materialized, or reintegrated in the air before my eyes. It was Koot Hoomi’s expected reply—a deeply interesting letter, partly concerned with private matters and replies to questions of mine, and partly with some large, though as yet shadowy, revelations of occult philosophy, the first sketch of this that I had received.<br />
<br />
On the next page, he comments that for some time this was the only [[Phenomena|phenomenon]] accorded him, as "The Higher authorities of the occult world, indeed had by this time put a very much more stringent prohibition upon such manifestations..." The effect of the [[Simla Phenomena|events at Simla]] the previous summer, he mentioned, "was not considered to have been satisfactory on the whole. A good deal of acrimonious discussion and bad feeling had ensued, and I imagine that this was conceived to outweigh, in its injurious effect on the progress of the theosophical movement, the good effect of the phenomena on the few persons who appreciated them." Another point about this letter is that—like some of the others—it was to have repercussions. In this instance, these were due to Sinnett’s indiscretion, or unwisdom, in making copious extracts from it for [[Stainton Moses]], whom the Mahatma discusses confidentially, and at great length, in this letter.<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 1. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], <br />
<blockquote><br />
In blue ink on both sides of 13 full-sized sheets of white paper. There are some smears and write-overs. On the last sheet and the next of the last some of the text appears to have been erased.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 60.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 18]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._17&diff=36407Mahatma Letter No. 172018-08-05T14:37:59Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = adept in France<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = March 26,1881<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = Terich-Mir<br />
| receivedat = London<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 31 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 17#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
<br><br />
<br><br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 16|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 18|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 74|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 82|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
<br> <br />
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== Envelope ==<br />
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England.<br><br />
A. P. Sinnett Es. F.T.S.<br><br />
c/o J. Herbert Stacks Esq.<br><br />
30 Kensington.<br><br />
Park. Gardens.<br><br />
London.<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-0_Envelope_6619.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-0_Envelope_6619_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* Barker underscored the word "England" twice in pencil and added the letter number XXXI.<br />
* Numbers 304 and 90 are penciled at the right.<br />
* The stamp is from France, saying "Republique Française" with a postmark above it saying "Loire". Another postmark above it refers to "Nante".<br />
* A red "PAID" postmark from London has the date "26 Ma 81". <br />
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== Envelope back ==<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-0_Envelope_6620.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-0_Envelope_6620_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* British Museum marking stamped in red.<br />
* London W postmark for March 26, 1881.<br />
<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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Received London, March 26th, 1881.<br />
<br />
It is from the depths of an unknown valley, amid the steep crags and glaciers of [[Terich-Mir]] — a vale never trodden by European foot since the day its parent mount was itself breathed out from within our Mother Earth's bosom — that your friend sends you these lines. For, it is there [[K.H.]] received your "Affectionate homages," and there he intends passing his "summer vacations." A letter "from the abodes of eternal snow and purity" sent to and received — "At the abodes of vice"! . . .<br />
<br />
Queer, n'est-ce pas? Would, or rather could I be with you at those "abodes"? No; but I was at several different times, elsewhere, though neither in "[[Astral Body|astral]]" nor in any other tangible form, but simply in thought. Does not satisfy you? Well, well, you know the limitations I am subjected to in your case, and you must have patience.<br />
<br />
Your future book is a little jewel; and, small and tiny as it is, it may, one day, be found to soar as high as Mount Everest over your Simla hills. Among all other works of that class, in the wild jungle of [[Spiritualism|Spiritualistic]] literature, it shall undoubtedly prove the Redeemer, offered as a sacrifice for the sin of the world of [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]]. They will begin by rejecting — nay — vilifying it; but, it will find its faithful twelve and — the seed thrown by your hand into the soil of speculation will not grow up as a weed. So far may be promised. You are oft too cautious. You remind too often the reader of your ignorance; and presenting but as a modest theory, that, which at the bottom of your heart you know and feel to be an axiom, a primary truth — instead of helping, you but perplex him and — create doubt. But it is a spirited and discriminative little memoir, and, as a critical estimate of the [[phenomena]] witnessed by<br />
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<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-1_6621.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-1_6621_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* Terich-Mir (alternatively Tirich Mir, Terichmir and Turch Mir) is the highest mountain in the Hindu Kush region located what today is Pakistan. It has an elevation of 25,289 ft (7,708 m). The first recorded climbing was in 1950.<br />
* "n'est-ce pas" is French for "is it not?"<br />
* "Your future book" refers to [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]]'s book ''[[The Occult World (book)|The Occult World]]''.<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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you personally far more useful than Mr. Wallace's work. It is at this sort of springs that [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] ought to be compelled to slake their thirst for [[phenomena]] and [[Mysticism|mystic]] knowledge instead of being left to swallow the idiotic gush they find in the Banners of Light and others. The world — meaning that of individual existences — is full of those latent meanings and deep purposes which underlie all the phenomena of the Universe, and [[Occult Science]]s — i.e., reason elevated to super-sensuous [[Wisdom]] — can alone furnish the key wherewith to unlock them to the intellect. Believe me, there comes a moment in the life of an [[adept]], when the hardships he has passed through are a thousandfold rewarded. In order to acquire further knowledge, he has no more to go through a minute and slow process of investigation and comparison of various objects, but is accorded an instantaneous, implicit insight into every first truth. Having passed that stage of philosophy which maintains that all fundamental truths have sprung from a blind impulse — it is the philosophy of your Sensationalists or Positivists; and left far behind him that other class of thinkers — the Intellectualists or Skeptics — who hold that fundamental truths are derived from the intellect alone, and that we, ourselves, are their only originating causes; the [[adept]] sees and feels and lives in the very source of all fundamental truths — the Universal Spiritual Essence of Nature, [[SHIVA]] the Creator, the Destroyer, and the Regenerator. As [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] of to-day have degraded "Spirit," so have the [[Hinduism|Hindus]] degraded Nature by their anthropormorphistic conceptions of it. Nature alone can incarnate the Spirit of limitless contemplation. "Absorbed in the absolute self-unconsciousness of physical Self, plunged in the depths of true Being, which<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-2_6622.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/17-2_6622_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* "Mr. Wallace's work": Probably refers to [[Alfred Russel Wallace]]'s book ''Miracles and Modern Spiritualism'', first published in 1874.<br />
* [[The Banner of Light (periodical)|''The Banner of Light'']] was a [[Spiritualism|Spiritualist]] newspaper founded by Luther Colby of Boston in 1857. The weekly newspaper proclaimed itself to be an “exponent of Spiritual philosophy of the 19th century,” and had the largest and longest circulation of any Spiritualist newspaper in the world. It ceased publication after 1910.<br />
<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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is no being but [[eternity|eternal]], universal Life," his whole form as immoveable and white as the eternal summits of snow in Kailasa where he sits, above care, above sorrow, above sin and worldliness, a mendicant, a sage, a healer, the King of Kings, the Yogi of Yogis," such is the ideal [[Shiva]] of [[Yoga]] Shastras the culmination of [[Wisdom#Divine wisdom|Spiritual Wisdom]]. . . . Oh, ye [[Max Müller|Max Mullers]] and [[Monier Monier-Williams|Monier Williamses]], what have ye done with our Philosophy!<br />
<br />
But you can hardly be expected to enjoy or even understand the above phanerosis of our teachings. Pardon me. I write but seldom letters; and whenever compelled to do so follow rather my own thoughts than strictly hold to the subject I ought to have in view. I have laboured for more than a quarter of a century night and day to keep my place within the ranks of that invisible but ever busy army which labours and prepares for a task which can bring no reward but the consciousness that we are doing our duty to humanity; and, meeting you on my way I have tried to — do not fear, — not to enroll you, for that would be impossible, but to simply draw your attention, excite your curiosity if not your better feelings to the one and only truth. You proved faithful and true, and have done your best. If your efforts will teach the world but one single letter from the alphabet of Truth — that Truth which once pervaded the whole world — your reward will not miss you. And now that you have met the "mystics" of Paris and London what do you think of them? . . .<br />
<br />
Yours,<br />
<br />
[[K. H.]]<br />
<br />
P.S. — Our hapless "[[H. P. Blavatsky|Old Lady]]" is sick. Liver, kidneys, head, brain, legs, every organ and limb shows fight and snaps its fingers at her efforts to ignore them. One of us will have to "fix her" as our worthy [[H. S. Olcott|Mr. Olcott]] says, or it will fare bad with her.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Kailasa''': Mount Kailash, is a peak in the Transhimalaya mountain range in Tibet. It is considered a sacred place in Bön, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. In Hinduism, it is considered to be the abode of Lord Shiva and a place of eternal bliss.<br />
* '''Max Muller''' and '''Monier Williams''' were orientalists regarded among the founders of the western academic field of Indian studies.<br />
<br />
{{Col-end}}<br />
<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
This appears to be the only letter received by [[A. P. Sinnett]] from the [[Mahātma|Mahatma]] while he was in England. The envelope in which it was enclosed is with the original letter in the British museum.<br />
<br />
[[Geoffrey A. Barborka]] suggests that the Mahatma composed the letter and transmitted it from Terich-Mir, where he was at the time, to an [[adept]] member of the Fraternity somewhere in France. This adept then, Mr. Barborka believes, put it in an envelope to which he affixed a French postage stamp and mailed it by regular post.<br />
<br />
Another possibility is that it was [[Precipitation|transmitted telepathically]] to a [[chela]] living in France, who wrote it out and posted it to Sinnett.<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 2. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], <br />
<blockquote><br />
In blue ink on two sheets of white paper, both sides, in fine lettering. The transmittal envelope is in the British Museum Folio. It is addressed to "A. P. Sinnett, Es. F. T. S., c/o Herbert Stacks, 30 Kensington Park Gardens, London." There is a 35c French postage stamp affixed to the lower right-hand corner of the envelope. The script on the envelope is entirely different from that of the letter.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 58.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
[[J. Herbert Stack]] was a member of the [[Society for Psychical Research]].<ref>"List of Members and Associates," ''SPR Proceedings'', (December 1884), 317. Available at [http://www.iapsop.com/archive/materials/spr_proceedings/spr_proceedings_v2_officers_and_members_1884.pdf International Association for the Preservation of Occult and Spiritualist Periodicals].</ref><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 17]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._16&diff=36406Mahatma Letter No. 162018-08-05T14:32:20Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = [[Henry Steel Olcott|H. S. Olcott]], "a friend"<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = Feb. 11-18, 1881, per [[Mary K. Neff|MKN]]<br />
| receiveddate = March 1, 1881<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Galle, Ceylon]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 107 in Barker numbering.''' In Letter No. 16, Mahatma [[Koot Hoomi]] offers reassurance to [[A. P. Sinnett]] that he is trying to calm down the agitated [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Helena Blavatsky]]. See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 16#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
<br><br />
<br><br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 15|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 17|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<br><br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 7|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 40|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
<br><br />
<br><br />
== Envelope ==<br />
<br />
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A. P. Sinnett, Es.<br />
<br> <br />
<nowiki><br />
[Tie Space]</nowiki> <br />
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<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/16-0_Envelope_7186.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/16-0_Envelope_7186_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* Barker notations on envelope: CVII and 189<br />
* Other notation: 319<br />
<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
<br />
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My dear Ambassador -- <br />
<br />
To quiet the anxiety I see lurking within your mind, and which has even a more definite form than you have expressed, let me say that I will use my best endeavours to calm our highly sensitive - not always sensible [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|old friend]], and make her stop at her post. Ill health resulting from natural causes, and mental anxiety have made her nervous to an extreme degree and sadly impaired her usefulness to us. For a fortnight past she has been all but useless, and her emotions have sped along her nerves like electricity thro' a telegraphic<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/16-1_7187.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/16-1_7187_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Old friend''' refers to [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]].<br />
<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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wire. All has been chaos. I am sending these few lines by a friend to [[Henry Steel Olcott|Olcott]] so that they may be forwarded without her knowledge. Consult freely with our friends in Europe and return with a good book in your hand and a good plan in your head. Encourage the sincere brethren at [[Galle, Ceylon|Galles]] to persevere in their work of education. Some cheering words from you will give them heart. Telegraph to Nicolas Dias Inspector of Police Galle that you a member of the [[General Council of the Theosophical Society]] are coming (the date and name of steamer given) and I will cause [[H. P. Blavatsky|H. P. B.]] to do the same to ''another'' person. Think<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"...our friends in Europe, etc."''' [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]] was about to depart for London in March 1881, where he would publish his first book ''[[The Occult World (book)|The Occult World]]''.<br />
* '''Galles''', now spelled Galle, is a city and district in southwest Ceylon (now Sri Lanka).<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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on the way of your true friend.<br />
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K. H. and ___.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* [[Djual Khool]], [[Koot Hoomi]]'s [[chela]], may have been implied in the signature line. See [[Mahatma Letter No. 16#Commentary about this letter|Joy Mills' commentary.]]<br />
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== Context and background ==<br />
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[[A. P. Sinnett]] received this letter while he was at [[Galle, Ceylon]], on his way back to England for a holiday.<br />
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In [[Old Diary Leaves (book)|''Old Diary Leaves'']], [[Henry Steel Olcott|Henry Olcott]] gave an account of [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|HPB's]] agitation:<br />
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<blockquote><br />
It had been arranged that I should return alone to Ceylon and begin the collection of a National Education Fund to promote the education of Buddhist boys and girls. The scheme had - as H. P. B. assured me - the full approbation of the Mahatmas, and her own concurrence had been strongly expressed. Thereupon I had written to Ceylon and made all necessary arrangements with our friends. But, on 11th February, as it seems, H. P. B. fell out with me because I would not cancel the engagement and stop and help her on the ''Theosophist''. Of course, I flatly refused to do anything of the kind, and as the natural consequence she fell into a white rage with me. She shut herself up in her room a whole week, refusing to see me, but sending me formal notes of one sort or another, among them one in which she notified me that the Lodge <nowiki>[White Brotherhood, or Mahatmas]</nowiki> would have nothing more to do with the Society or myself, and I might go to Timbuctoo if I liked. I simply said that my tour having been fully approved of by the Lodge, I should carry it through, even though I never saw the face of a Master again; that I did not believe them to be such vacillating and whimsical creatures; if they were, I preferred to work on without them. Her ill-temp burnt itself out at last.<ref>Henry Steel Olcott, ''Old Diary Leaves, Second Series, 1878-83'' (Adyar, Madras, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 293-294.</ref> <br />
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According to [[Margaret Conger]]'s chronology, this is 22nd letter in sequence, whereas [[Mary K. Neff]] considered it to be number 14.<br />
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== Physical description of letter ==<br />
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The original is in the British Library, Folio 3. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], <br />
<blockquote><br />
Fine, carefully formed lettering in dark blue ink, on a single sheet of rippled white paper.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 57.</ref><br />
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== Publication history ==<br />
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This letter is presented as number 107 in the first three editions of [[The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett|''The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'']] transcribed and compiled by [[A. T. Barker]].<br />
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== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
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[[Joy Mills]] comments about Letter No. 16: <br />
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<blockquote><br />
Although very brief, Letter 16 is interesting for several reasons. First, it was received by Sinnett in Ceylon when he and his family were en route to England; however its transmittal was through Olcott rather than through HPB. The transmittal note accompanying the letter is found in LBS (page 363), with Sinnett's own record as to the day and time it was received. That note reads: "Dear O., Forward this immediately to A. P. Sinnett, and do not breathe a word of it to HPB. Let her alone, and do not go near her for a few days. The storm will subside. K.H.L.S."<ref>Joy Mills, ''Reflections on an Ageless Wisdom,'' (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 2010), 52.</ref><br />
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She continues:<br />
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<blockquote><br />
The opening paragraph of Letter 16 refers to HPB's condition at the time and indicates why the communication is sent via Olcott. KH was apparently eager to communicate with Sinnett during his stopover in Ceylon so he could urge Sinnett to encourage the Buddhist education for which Olcott himself was also to travel there. KH even tells Sinnett the person he is to contact (via telegraph) in Galle. The identity of "''another'' person," whom the Mahatma will have HPB contact, is unclear - perhaps a chela resident in Ceylon or even a Brother known to KH.<ref>Ibid, 53.</ref><br />
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The signature may return to Djual Khul, to the one mentioned as "''another'' person" or to the chela who transmitted the letter to Olcott.<ref>Ibid, 53.</ref> She goes on to identify the "friends in Europe" mentioned on page 1 as Lord Lindsay, Dr. Wyld, and members of the London Society.<ref>Ibid, 54.</ref><br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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== Additional resources ==<br />
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[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 16]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._15&diff=35922Mahatma Letter No. 152018-05-18T11:59:19Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]]<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = February 20, 1881<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = [[Bombay, India]]<br />
| receivedat = [[Allahabad, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 8 in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 15#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 14b|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 16|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 13|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 18|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Cover sheet ==<br />
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Received through [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mad. B.]] About February 20th, 1881.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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My dear friend, you are certainly on the right path: the path of deeds and actions, not mere words — may you live long and keep on!. . . I hope this will not be regarded by you as an encouragement to be "goody-goody" — a happy expression which made me laugh — but you indeed step in as a kind of [[Avatāra#Kalki Avatar|Kalka Avatar]] dispelling the shadows of "[[Kali-yug]]" — the black night of the perishing [[Theosophical Society|T.S.]] and driving away before you the fata morgana of its Rules. I must cause the word fecit to appear after your name in invisible but indelible characters on the list of the General Council, as it may prove some day a secret door to the heart of the sternest of [[Hobilgan]]s. . . .<br />
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Though a good deal occupied — alas, as usual, I must contrive to send you a somewhat lengthy farewell epistle before you take up a journey that may have most important results — and not alone for our cause. . . . You understand, do you not, that it is no fault of mine if I cannot meet you as I would? Nor is it yours, but rather that of your life-long environment and a special delicate task I have been entrusted with since I knew you. Do not blame me then, if I do not show myself in more tangible shape, as not<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* A "Fata Morgana" is an unusual and complex form of superior mirage that is seen in a narrow band right above the horizon.<br />
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* Fecit: "He or she made it" -- used formerly on works of art next to the artist's name.<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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you alone, but I myself might desire! When I am not permitted to do so for [[H. S. Olcott|Olcott]] — who has toiled for us these five years, how could I be for others who have undergone none of his training as yet? This applies equally to the case of the Lord Crawford and Balcarres, an excellent gentleman — imprisoned by the world. His is a sincere and noble, though may be a little too repressed nature. He asks what hope he may have? I say — every hope. For he has that within himself that so very few possess: an exhaustless source of magnetic fluid which, if he only had the time, he could call out in torrents and need no other master than himself. His own powers would do the work and his own great experience be a sure guide for him. But, he would have to guard against, and avoid every foreign influence — especially those antagonistic to the nobler study of MAN as an integral [[Brahm]], the [[microcosm]] free and entirely independent of either the help or control of the invisible agencies the "new dispensation" (bombastic word!) calls "Spirits." His Lordship will understand my meaning without any further explanation: he is welcome to read this if he chooses, if the opinions of an obscure [[Hinduism|Hindu]] interest him.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* James Ludovic Lindsay, the Earl of Crawford and of Balcarres (1847–1913) was a British astronomer, book collector, and Freemason, and a member Royal Society.<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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Were he a poor man, he might have become an English Dupotet, with the addition of great scientific attainments in exact science. But alas —! what the peerage has gained psychology has lost. . . . And yet it is not too late. But see, even after mastering [[Mesmerism|magnetic science]] and giving his powerful mind to the study of the noblest branches of exact science, how even he has failed to lift more than a small corner of the veil of mystery. Ah! that whirling, showy, glittering world, full of insatiable ambition, where family and the State parcel out between them a man's nobler nature, as two tigers a carcase, and leave him without hope or light! How many recruits could we not have from it, if no sacrifice were exacted! His Lordship's letter to you exhales an influence of sincerity tinged with regret. This is a good man at heart with latent capacity for being a far better and a happier one. Had his lot not been cast as it has, and had his intellectual power all been turned upon [[Soul]]-culture, he would have achieved much more than he ever dreamt. Out of such material were [[adept]]s made in the days of [[Aryan]] glory. But<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Baron Du Potet de Sennevoy''' was a French nobleman who wrote about animal magnetism ([[Mesmerism]]) in the 19th century.<br />
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== Page 4 ==<br />
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I must dwell no longer upon this case; and I crave his Lordship's pardon if, in the bitterness of my regret I over-stepped in any way the bounds of propriety, in this too free "[[Psychometry|psychometrical]] delineation of character" as the American [[Mediumship|mediums]] would express it . . . full measure only bounds excess" but — I dare go no further. Ah, my too positive and yet impatient friend, if you but had such latent capacities!<br />
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The "direct communication" with me of which you write in your supplement note, and the "enormous advantage" that it would bring "to the book itself, if it can be conceded," would be so conceded at once, did it depend but of me alone. Though it is not often judicious to repeat oneself, yet I am so anxious that you should realize the present impracticability of such an arrangement, were it even conceded by our Superiors, that I will indulge in a brief retrospect of principles stated.<br />
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We might leave out of the question the most vital point — one, you would hesitate perhaps to believe — that the refusal concerns as much your own salvation (from the standpoint of your worldly material considerations)<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
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== Page 5 ==<br />
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as my enforced compliance with our time honoured Rules. Again I might cite the case of [[H. S. Olcott|Olcott]] (who, had he not been permitted to communicate face to face — and without any intermediary — with us, might have subsequently shown less zeal and devotion but more discretion) and his fate up to the present. But, the comparison would doubtless appear to you strained. [[H. S. Olcott|Olcott]] — would you say — is an enthusiast, a stubborn, unreasoning [[Mysticism|mystic]], who goes headlong before him, blindfolded, and who will not allow himself to look forward with his own eyes. While you are a sober, matter-of-fact man of the world, the son of your generation of cool thinkers; ever keeping fancy under the curb, and saying to enthusiasm: "Thus far shalt thou go and no farther." . . . Perhaps you are right — perhaps not. "No Lama knows where the ber-chhen will hurt him until he puts it on," says a Tibetan proverb. However, let that pass, for I must tell you now that for opening "direct communication" the only possible means would be: (1) For each of us to meet in our own physical bodies. I being where I am, and you in your own quarters, there is a material impediment for me. (2) For both to meet in our [[Astral Body|astral form]] — which would <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* "ber-chhen" is a Tibetan word meaning a full cloak<ref>Sarat Chandra Das, Graham Sandberg and Augustus William Heyde,''A Tibetan-English Dictionary with Sanskrit Synonyms, Volume 2'', 1st Edition, (Calcutta, 1902), 876. Accessed at Internet Archive[http://archive.org/stream/tibetanenglishdi00dassuoft#page/876/mode/2up]</ref><br />
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== Page 6 ==<br />
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necessitate your "getting out" of yours, as well as my leaving my body. The spiritual impediment to this is on your part. (3) To make you hear my voice either within you or near you as "[[H. P. Blavatsky|the old lady]]" does. This would be feasible in either of two ways: (a) My chiefs have but to give me permission to set up the conditions — and this for the present they refuse; or (b) for you to hear my voice, i.e., my natural voice without any psycho-physiological tamasha being employed by me (again as we often do among ourselves). But then, to do this, not only have one's spiritual senses to be abnormally opened, but one must himself have mastered the great secret — yet undiscovered by science — of, so to say abolishing all the impediments of space; of neutralising for the time being the natural obstacle of intermediary particles of air and forcing the waves to strike your ear in reflected sounds or echo. Of the latter you know as yet only enough to regard this as an unscientific absurdity. Your physicists, not having until recently mastered acoustics in this direction, any further than to acquire a perfect (?) knowledge of the vibration of sonorous bodies and of reverberations through tubes, may sneeringly ask: "Where are your indefinitely<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*'''Tamasha''' is a psychic illusion. The word literally means "a spectacle; entertainment." <br />
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== Page 7 ==<br />
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continued sonorous bodies, to conduct through space the vibrations of the voice?" We answer that our tubes, though invisible, are indestructible and far more perfect than those of modern physicists, by whom the velocity of the transmission of mechanical force through the air is represented as at the rate of 1,100 feet a second and no more — if I mistake not. But then, may there not be people who have found more perfect and rapid means of transmission, from being somewhat better acquainted with the [[occult power]]s of air ([[akas]]) and having plus a more cultivated judgment of sounds? But of this we will argue later on.<br />
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There is still more serious inconvenience; an almost insurmountable obstacle — for the present, and one, under which I myself am labouring, while even I do no more than correspond with you, a simple thing that any other mortal could do. It is my utter inability to make you understand my meaning in my explanation of even physical [[phenomena]], let alone the spiritual rationale. This is not the first time I mention it. It is, as though a child should ask me to teach him the highest problems of Euclid before he had even begun studying the elementary rules of arithmetic.<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
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== Page 8 ==<br />
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Only the progress one makes in the study of Arcane knowledge from its rudimental elements, brings him gradually to understand our meaning. Only thus, and not otherwise, does it, strengthening and refining those mysterious links of sympathy between intelligent men — the temporarily isolated fragments of the universal [[Soul]] and the cosmic [[Soul]] itself — bring them into full rapport. Once this established, then only will these awakened sympathies serve, indeed, to connect MAN with — what for the want of a European scientific word more competent to express the idea, I am again compelled to describe as that energetic chain which binds together the material and Immaterial Kosmos, — Past, Present, and Future — and quicken his perceptions so as to clearly grasp, not merely all things of matter, but of Spirit also. I feel even irritated at having to use these three clumsy words — past, present and future! Miserable concepts of the objective phases of the Subjective Whole, they are about as ill adapted for the purpose as an axe for fine carving. Oh, my poor, disappointed friend, that you were already so far advanced on [[Chela|THE PATH]], that this simple transmission of ideas should<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
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== Page 9 ==<br />
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not be encumbered by the conditions of matter, the union of your mind with ours — prevented by its induced incapabilities! Such is unfortunately the inherited and self-acquired grossness of the Western mind; and so greatly have the very phrases expressive of modern thoughts been developed in the line of practical materialism, that it is now next to impossible either for them to comprehend or for us to express in their own languages anything of that delicate seemingly ideal machinery of the Occult Kosmos. To some little extent that faculty can be acquired by the Europeans through [[Theosophical Study|study]] and [[meditation]] but — that's all. And here is the bar which has hitherto prevented a conviction of the theosophical truths from gaining wider currency among Western Nations; caused theosophical study to be cast aside as useless and fantastic by Western philosophers. How shall I teach you to read and write or even comprehend a language of which no alphabet palpable, or words audible to you have yet been invented! How could the phenomena of our modern electrical science be explained to — say, a Greek philosopher of the days of Ptolemy were he suddenly recalled to life — with such an unbridged hiatus in discovery as would exist <br />
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== Page 10 ==<br />
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between his and our age? Would not the very technical terms be to him an unintelligible jargon, an abracadabra of meaningless sounds, and the very instruments and apparatuses used, but "miraculous" monstrosities? And suppose, for one instant, I were to describe to you the hues of those colour rays that lie beyond the so-called "visible spectrum" — rays invisible to all but a very few even among us; to explain, how we can fix in space any one of the so-called subjective or accidental colours — the complement, (to speak mathematically) moreover, of any other given colour of a dichromatic body (which alone sounds like an absurdity), could you comprehend, do you think, their optical effect or even my meaning? And, since you see them not, such rays, nor can know them, nor have you any names for them as yet in Science, if I were to tell you: — "My good friend [[A. P. Sinnett|Sinnett]], if you please, without moving from your writing desk, try search for, and produce before your eyes the whole solar spectrum decomposed into fourteen prismatic colours (seven being complementary), as it is but with the help of that [[occult]] light that you can see me from a distance as I see you" . . . . what think you, would be your answer? What would you have<br />
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== Page 11 ==<br />
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to reply? Would you not be likely enough to retort by telling me in your own quiet, polite way, that as there never were but seven (now three) primary colours, which, moreover, have never yet by any known physical process — been seen decomposed further than the seven prismatic hues — my invitation was as "unscientific" as it was "absurd"? Adding that my offer to search for an imaginary solar "complement" being no compliment to your knowledge of physical science — I had better, perhaps, go and search for my mythical "dichromatic" and solar "pairs" in Thibet, for modern science has hitherto been unable to bring under any theory even so simple a phenomenon as the colours of all such dichromatic bodies. And yet — truth knows — these colours are objective enough!<br />
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So you see, the insurmountable difficulties in the way of attaining not only Absolute but even primary knowledge in [[Occult Science]], for one situated as you are. How could you make your self understood — command in fact — those [[Elementals|semi-intelligent Forces]], whose means of communicating with us are not through spoken words but through sounds and colours, in correlations between the vibrations of the two? For sound, light and colours are the main factors in forming these grades of <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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Intelligences, these beings, of whose very existence you have no conception, nor are you allowed to believe in them — [[Atheism|Atheists]] and [[Christianity|Christians]], materialists and [[Spiritualism|Spiritualist]]s, all bringing forward their respective arguments against such a belief — Science objecting stronger than either of these to such a "degrading superstition"!<br />
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Thus, because they cannot with one leap over the boundary walls attain to the pinnacles of [[Eternity]]; because we cannot take a savage from the centre of Africa and make him comprehend at once the Principia of Newton or the "Sociology" of [[Herbert Spencer]]; or make an unlettered child write a new Iliad in old Achaian Greek; or an ordinary painter depict scenes in Saturn or sketch the inhabitants of Arcturus — because of all this our very existence is denied! Yes; for this reason are believers in us pronounced impostors and fools, and the very science which leads to the highest goal of the highest knowledge, to the real tasting of the [[Tree of Life]] and Wisdom — is scouted as a wild flight of Imagination!<br />
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Most earnestly do I ask you not to see in the above a mere ventilation of personal feeling. My time is precious and I have none to lose. Still less ought you to see in this an effort to disgust or dissuade you from the noble work you<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"Achaia" or Achaea''' was an ancient area in the northernmost region of the Peloponnese.<br />
* '''"Arcturus"''' is a star in the constellation of Boötes. It is relatively close, at 36.7 light-years from the Sun.<br />
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have just begun. Nothing of the kind; for what I now say may avail for as much as it can and no more; but — vera pro gratis — I WARN you, and will say no more, apart from reminding you in a general way, that the task you are so bravely undertaking, that Missio in partis infidelium — is the most ungrateful, perhaps, of all tasks! But, if you believe in my friendship for you, if you value the word of honour of one who never — never during his whole life polluted his lips with an untruth, then do not forget the words I once wrote to you (see my last letter) of those who engage themselves in the [[occult science]]s; he who does it "must either reach the goal or perish. Once fairly started on the way to the great Knowledge, to doubt is to risk insanity; to come to a dead stop is to fall; to recede is to tumble backward, headlong into an abyss." Fear not, — if you are sincere, and that you are — now. Are you as sure of yourself, as to future?<br />
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But I believe it quite time to turn to less transcendental and what you would call less gloomy and more mundane matters. Here, no doubt, you will be much more at home. Your experience, your training, your intellect, your<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"''Vera pro gratis''"''' is a Latin phrase referring to an advice that is for free or unsolicited.<br />
* '''"''Missio in partis infidelium''"''' is Latin for "mission in the lands of the unbelievers."<br />
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knowledge of the exterior world, in short, all combine to aid you in the accomplishment of the task you have undertaken. For, they place you on an infinitely higher level than myself as regards the consideration of writing a book, after your Society's "own heart." Though the interest I take in it may amaze some who are likely to retort on me and my colleagues with our own arguments, and to remark that our "boasted elevation over the common herd" (our friend [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]]'s words) — above the interests and passions of ordinary humanity, must militate against our having any conception of the ordinary affairs of life — yet I confess that I do take an interest in this book and its success, as great as in the success in life of its future author.<br />
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I hope that at least you will understand that we (or most of us) are far from being the heartless, morally dried up mummies some would fancy us to be. "Mejnoor" is very well, where he is — as an ideal character of a thrilling — in many respects truthful story. Yet, believe me, few of us would care to play the part in life of a dessicated pansy between the leaves of a volume of solemn poetry. We may not be quite <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Mejnour''' is a character in Bulwer Lytton's occult novel ''Zanoni''. He was Zanoni's master.<br />
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the "boys" — to quote [[H. S. Olcott|Olcott]]'s irreverent expression when speaking of us — yet none of our degree are like the stern hero of [[Edward Bulwer-Lytton|Bulwer]]'s romance. While the facilities of observation secured to some of us by our condition certainly give a greater breadth of view, a more pronounced and impartial, as a more widely spread humaneness — for answering Addison, we might justly maintain that it is . . . "the business of 'magic' to humanise our natures with compassion" for the whole mankind as all living beings, instead of concentrating and limiting our affections to one predilected race — yet few of us (except such as have attained the final negation of [[Moksha]]) can so far enfranchise ourselves from the influence of our earthly connection as to be insusceptible in various degrees to the higher pleasures, emotions, and interests of the common run of humanity. Until final emancipation reabsorbs the [[Ego]], it must be conscious of the purest sympathies called out by the esthetic effects of high art, its tenderest cords respond to the call of the holier and nobler human attachments. Of course, the greater the progress towards deliverance, the less this will be the case, until, to crown all, human and purely individual personal feelings — blood-ties and friendship, patriotism and race predilection — all will give away, to become blended into one universal feeling, the only true and holy, the only unselfish and [[Eternal]] one — Love, an Immense Love for humanity — as a Whole! For it is "Humanity" which is the great Orphan, the only disinherited one upon this earth, my friend. And it is the duty of every man<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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who is capable of an unselfish impulse, to do something, however little, for its welfare. Poor, poor humanity! It reminds me of the old fable of the war between the Body and its members: here too, each limb of this huge "Orphan" — fatherless and motherless — selfishly cares but for itself. The body uncared for suffers eternally, whether the limbs are at war or at rest. Its suffering and agony never cease. . . . And who can blame it — as your materialistic philosophers do — if, in this everlasting isolation and neglect it has evolved gods, unto whom "it ever cries for help but is not heard!" . . . Thus —<br />
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"Since there is hope for man only in man<br />
I would not let one cry whom I could save! . . ."<br />
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Yet I confess that I, individually, am not yet exempt from some of the terrestrial attachments. I am still attracted toward some men more than toward others, and philanthropy as preached by our Great Patron — "the Saviour of the World — the Teacher of [[Nirvana]] and the Law . . . ." has never killed in me either individual preferences of friendship, love — for my next of kin, or the ardent feeling of patriotism for the country — in which I was last materially individualized. And, in this connection, I may some day, unasked, offer a bit of advice to my friend [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]], to whisper into the ear of the Editor of the [[Pioneer|PIONEER]] En attendant — <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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"May I beg the former to inform [[Dr. Wyld|Dr. Wyld]], the Prest. of the [[London Lodge|British T.S.]], of the few truths concerning us as shown above? Will you kindly undertake to persuade this excellent gentleman, that not one of the humble "dew drops" which, assuming under various pretexts the form of vapour, have at various periods disappeared in the space to congeal in the white Himalayan clouds, have ever tried to slip back into the shining Sea of [[Nirvana]] through the unhealthy process of hanging by the legs or by making unto themselves another "coat of skin" out of the sacred cow-dung of the thrice "holy cow"! The British President labours under the most original ideas about us, whom he persists in calling "[[Yogi]]s," without allowing the slightest margin to the enormous differences which exist even between "[[Hatha Yoga|Hatha]] and [[Raja Yoga|Raj Yog]]." This mistake must be laid at the door of [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mrs. B.]] — the able editor of "[[The Theosophist (periodical)|The Theosophist]]"; who fills up her volumes with the practices of divers [[Sannyasi]]s and other "blessed ones" from the plains, without ever troubling herself with a few additional lines of explanation.<br />
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And now, to still more important matters. Time is precious and material (I mean writing material) is still more so. "[[Precipitation]]" — in your case having become unlawful; lack of — whether ink or paper — standing no better chance for "Tamasha," and I, being far away from home, and at a place where a stationer's shop is less needed than breathing air, our<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''Tamasha''' is a psychic illusion. The word literally means "a spectacle; entertainment."<br />
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correspondence threatens to break very abruptly, unless I manage my stock in hand judiciously. A friend promises to supply me in case of great need with a few stray sheets, memento relics of his grandfather's will, by which he disinherited him and thus made his "fortune." But, as he never wrote one line but once, he says — for the last eleven years, except on such "double superfin glace" made at Thibet as you might irreverently mistake for blotting paper in its primitive days, and that the will is drawn upon a like material — we might as well turn to your book at once. Since you do me the favour of asking my opinion, I may tell you that the idea is an excellent one. [[Theosophy]] needs such help, and the results will be what you anticipate in England as well. It may also help our friends in Europe — generally.<br />
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I lay no restrictions upon your making use of anything I may have written to you or [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]], having full confidence in your tact and judgment as to what should be printed and how it should be presented. I must only ask you for reasons upon which I must be silent (and I am sure you will respect that silence) not to use one single word or passage from my last letter to you — the one written after my long silence, no date, and the first one forwarded to you by our "[[H. P. Blavatsky|old lady]]." I just quoted from it at page 4. Do me the favour, <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* "A friend promises to supply me..." This probably refers to [[Djual Khool]], a chela of [[Mahatma]] [[Koot Hoomi|K. H.]]<br />
* "your book" refers to [[A. P. Sinnett]]'s future book ''The Occult World''.<br />
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if my poor epistles are worth preserving, to lay it by in a separate and sealed envelope. You may have to unseal it only after a certain period of time has elapsed. As to the rest — I relinquish it to the mangling tooth of criticism. Nor would I interfere with the plan you have roughly sketched out in your mind. But I would strongly recommend you in its execution to lay the greatest stress upon small circumstances — (could you oblige me with some receipt for blue ink?!) which tend to show the impossibility of fraud or conspiracy. Reflect well, how bold a thing it is to endorse [[phenomena]] as [[adept]]ic which the [[Spiritualism|Spirits(ts)]] have already stamped as proofs of [[mediumship]] and skeptics as legerdemain. You should not omit one jot or tittle of collateral evidence that supports your position, something you have neglected doing in your "A" letter in the [[Pioneer]]. For instance, my friend tells me that it was [[Cup and Saucer (phenomenon)|a thirteenth cup]] and the pattern unmatchable, in Simla at least.'''(#)''' The pillow was chosen by yourself — and yet the word "pillow" occurs in my note to you, just as the word "tree" or anything else would have been substituted, had <br />
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'''(#)''' So, at least, [[Patience Sinnett|Mrs S.]] says; I myself did not search the crockery shops; so too, the bottle filled with water — I filled with my own hand — was one of the four only that the servants had in the baskets, and these four bottles had but just been brought back empty by these peons from their fruitless search after water, when you sent them to the little brewery with a note. Hoping to be excused for the interference and with my most respectful regards to the lady. Yours, etc. <br />
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[[Djual Khool|The "Disinherited]]" <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* The word "receipt" (for blue ink) may have been used here in its less common meaning of "recipe".<br />
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you chosen another depository, instead of the pillow. You will find all such trifles serving you as the most powerful shield for yourself against ridicule and sneers. Then you will of course, aim to show that this [[Theosophy]] is no new candidate for the world's attention, but only the restatement of principles which have been recognised from the very infancy of mankind. The historic sequence ought to be succinctly yet graphically traced through the successive evolutions of philosophical schools, and illustrated with accounts of the experimental demonstrations of [[occult power]] ascribed to various thaumaturgists. The alternate breakings-out and subsidences of [[Mysticism|mystical]] [[phenomena]], as well as their shiftings from one centre to another of population, show the conflicting play of the opposing forces of spirituality and animalism. And lastly it will appear that the present tidal-wave of [[phenomena]], with its varied effects upon human thought and feeling, made the revival of [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] enquiry an indispensable necessity. The only problem to solve is the practical one, of how best to promote the necessary study, and give to the [[Spiritualism|spiritualistic]] movement a needed upward impulse. It is a good beginning to make the inherent capabilities of the inner, living man better comprehended. To lay down the scientific proposition that since akrshu (attraction) and Prshu (repulsion) are the law of nature, there can be no intercourse or relations between clean and unclean [[Soul]]s — embodied or disembodied; and<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* The modern spelling for the Sanskrit word '''akrshu (attraction)''' is ākarṣa, and for the term '''Prshu (repulsion)''' is preṣa.<br />
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hence, ninety-nine hundredths of supposed spiritual communications, are, prima facie false. Here is as great a fact to work upon as you can find, and it cannot be made too plain. So, while a better selection might have been made for [[The Theosophist (periodical)|the Theosophist]] in the way of illustrative anecdotes, as, for instance, well authenticated historical cases, yet the theory of turning the minds of [[phenomena]]lists into useful and suggestive channels away from mere [[medium]]istic dogmatism was the correct one.<br />
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What I meant by the "Forlorn Hope" was that when one regards the magnitude of the task to be undertaken by our [[Theosophy|theosophical]] volunteers, and especially the multitudinous agencies arrayed, and to be arrayed, in opposition, we may well compare it, to one of those desperate efforts against overwhelming odds that the true soldier glories to attempt. You have done well to see the "large purpose" in the small beginnings of the [[Theosophical Society|T.S.]] Of course, if we had undertaken to found and direct it in propria persona very likely it would have accomplished more and made fewer mistakes, but we could not do this, nor was it the plan: our two agents are given the task and left — as you now are — to do the best they could under the circumstances. And much has been wrought. Under the surface of [[Spiritualism]], runs a current that is wearing a broad channel for itself. When it reappears above ground its effects will be apparent. Already many minds like yours are pondering the question<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* "Our two agents": [[H. P. Blavatsky]] and [[H. S. Olcott]]<br />
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of [[occult]] law — forced upon the thinking public by this agitation. Like you, they are dissatisfied with what has been hitherto attainable and clamour for better. Let this — encourage you.<br />
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It is not quite accurate that by having such minds in the [[Theosophical Society|Society]] they would be "under conditions more favourable for observation" for us. Rather put it, that by the act of joining other sympathisers in this organization they are stimulated to effort and incite each other to investigate. Unity always gives strength; and since [[Occultism]] in our days resembles a "Forlorn Hope," union and co-operation are indispensable. Union does indeed imply a concentration of vital and magnetic force against the hostile currents of prejudice and fanaticism.<br />
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I wrote a few words in the Maratha boy's [[Mahatma Letter No. 14a|letter]], only to show you that he was obeying orders in submitting his views to you. Apart from his exaggerated idea about huge fees, his letter is in a way worth considering. For [[Damodar K. Mavalankar|Damodar]] is a [[Hinduism|Hindu]] — and knows the mind of his people at Bombay; though the Bombay [[Hinduism|Hindu]]s are about as unspiritual a group as can be found in all India. But, like the devoted enthusiastic lad he is, he jumped after the misty form of his own ideas even before I could give them the right direction. All quick thinkers are<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* The "Maratha boy" is [[Damodar K. Mavalankar]].<br />
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hard to impress — in a flash they are out and away in "full cry," before half understanding what one wants to have them think. This is our trouble with both [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mrs. B.]] and [[H. S. Olcott|O.]] The frequent failure of the latter to carry out the suggestions he sometimes receives — even when written, is almost wholly due to his own active mentality preventing his distinguishing our impressions from his own conceptions. And [[H. P. Blavatsky|Missus B.]]'s trouble is (apart from physical ailment) that she sometimes listens to two or more of our voices at once; e.g., this morning while the "[[Djual Khool|Disinherited]]," whom I have accommodated with space for a footnote — was talking with her on an important matter, she lent an ear to one of ours, who is passing through Bombay from Cyprus, on his way to Thibet — and so got both in an inextricable confusion. Women do lack the power of concentration.<br />
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And now, my good friend and co-worker — an irremediable paperless condition obliges me to close. Farewell, until your return, unless you will be content, as hitherto, to pass our correspondence through the accustomed channel. Neither of us would prefer this. But until authority is given to change it must be even so. Were she to die to-day — and she is really sick — you would not <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* "[S]he is really sick" refers to [[H. P. Blavatsky]]<br />
* "One of ours, who is passing through Bombay" refers to [[Hillarion|Master H.]]<br />
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receive more than two, or at most three more letters from me (through [[Damodar K. Mavalankar|Damodar]] or [[H. S. Olcott|Olcott]], or through already established emergent agencies), and then, that reservoir of force being exhausted — our parting would be FINAL. However, I will not anticipate; events might bring us together somewhere in Europe. But whether we meet or not, during your trip, be assured that my personal good wishes will attend you. Should you actually need now and again the help of a happy thought as your work progresses, it may, very likely be, osmosed into your head — if sherry bars not the way, as it has already done at Allahabad.<br />
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May the "deep Sea" deal gently with you and your house...<br />
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Ever yours,<br />
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[[K. H.]]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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P.S. — The "friend" of whom the Lord Lindsay speaks in his letter to you, is, I am sorry to say, a true skunk mephitis, who managed to perfume himself with ess-bouquet in his presence during their palmy days of friendship, and so avoided being recognised by his natural stench. It is [[Daniel Dunglas Home|Home]] — the [[medium]], a convert to [[Christianity|Roman Catholicism]], then to [[Christianity|Protestantism]], and finally to the [[Christianity|Greek Church]]. He is the bitterest and most cruel enemy [[Henry Steel Olcott|O.]] and [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mad. B.]] have, though he has never met either of them. For a certain time he succeeded in poisoning the Lord's mind, and prejudiced him against them. I do not like saying anything behind a man's back, for it looks like back-biting. Yet in view of some future events I feel it my duty to warn you, for this one is an exceptionally bad man — hated by the [[Spiritualism|Spiritualists]] and [[Mediumship|mediums]] as much as he is despised by those — who have learned to know him. Yours is a work which clashes directly with his. Though a poor sickly cripple, a paralysed wretch, his mental faculties are as fresh and as alive as ever to mischief. He is no man to stop before a slanderous accusation — however vile and lying. So — beware.<br />
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[[K. H.]]<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/15-25.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/15-24_6102_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
<br />
{{Col-end}}<br />
<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
[[A. P. Sinnett]] had been attempting to do something about the rules of the [[Theosophical Society]], of which he was Vice-President at the time. The opening page of this letter refers to these efforts.<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 1. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written:<br />
<blockquote><br />
In blue ink on both sides of 12 full-sized sheets of paper. Some words in the letter have been marked out. Just prior to the place where the note is inserted by [[Djual Khool|DK]] (p. 34), the script becomes smaller and finer. A comment near the end of the letter would indicate that it was being written by [[Koot Hoomi|KH]] himself somewhere in the high mountains.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 53-54.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 15]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._14b&diff=35716Mahatma Letter No. 14b2018-03-07T21:34:08Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Damodar]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Damodar K. Mavalankar|Damodar]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = before February 20, 1881<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Allahabad, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 142b in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 14b#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
<br><br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 14a|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 15|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 14a|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 4|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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Respectfully submitted for the consideration of [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]], under the direct orders of Brother [[Koot Hoomi]].<br />
<br />
[[Damodar K. Mavalankar]].<br />
<br />
With the exception of fee — too exaggerated — his views are quite correct. Such is the impression produced upon the native mind. I trust, my dear friend, that you add a paragraph showing the [[Theosophical Society|Society]] in its true light. Listen to your inner voice, and oblige once more your's<br />
<br />
Ever faithfully,<br />
<br />
[[Koot Hoomi|K. H]]<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/14B-1_7317.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/14B-1_7317_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* <br />
<br />
{{Col-end}}<br />
<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], <br />
<blockquote><br />
Similar to those of [[Mahatma Letter No. 13|ML-7 (12)]]. [[Damodar K. Mavalankar|DKM]] was at the Bombay headquarters. On p. 26 ([[Mahatma Letter No. 15|ML-8 (14)]]), [[Koot Hoomi|KH]] explains the reason for this letter. [[Old Diary Leaves (book)|ODL 2:291 et seq]] explains that DKM was living with the [[Founders]] and helping with the work.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 53.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 6. No description was obtained by [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]].<br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 14b]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._14a&diff=35715Mahatma Letter No. 14a2018-03-07T21:31:08Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Damodar]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Damodar K. Mavalankar|Damodar]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = unknown<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = before February 20, 1881 <br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = [[Bombay, India]]<br />
| receivedat = [[Allahabad, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 142a in Barker numbering.''' See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 14a#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
<br><br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 13|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 14b|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 140|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 14b|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY<br />
<br />
With reference to the Rules and Organization of the Society, I beg to make the following suggestions. The points I urge, appear to me very necessary as I have had conversation with many Natives and have a claim to know the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] character better than a foreigner can.<br />
<br />
A general impression appears to prevail that the [[Theosophical Society|Society]] is a religious sect. This impression owes its origin, I think, to a common belief that the whole [[Theosophical Society|Society]] is devoted to [[Occultism]]. As far as I can judge, this is not the case. If it is, the best course to adopt would be to make the entire [[Theosophical Society|Society]] a secret one, and shut its doors against all except those very few who may have shown a determination to devote their whole lives to the study of [[Occultism]]. If it is not so, and is based upon the broad Humanitarian principle of [[Universal Brotherhood]], let [[Occultism]], one of its several Branches, be an entirely secret study. From time immemorial this sacred knowledge has been guarded from the vulgar with great care, and because a few of us have had the great fortune to come into contact with some of the custodians of this invaluable treasure, is it right on our part to take advantage of their kindness and vulgarize the secrets they esteem more sacred than even their lives? The world is not yet prepared to hear truth about this subject. By placing the facts before the unprepared general public, we only make a laughing stock of those who have been kind to us and have accepted us as their co-workers for doing good to humanity. By harping too much upon this subject, we have made ourselves in a measure odious in the eyes of the public. We went even to such an extent that, unconsciously to ourselves, we led the public to believe that our [[Theosophical Society|Society]] is under the sole management of the [[Adepts]], while the fact is that the entire executive management is in the hands of [[Founders#The Founders|the Founders]], and our Teachers give us advice only in rare exceptional cases of the greatest emergency. The public saw that they must have misapprehended the facts, since errors in the Management of the [[Theosophical Society|Society]] — some of which could have been very well avoided by the exercise of ordinary common sense — were from time to time exposed. Hence they came to the conclusion that<br />
<br />
(1) Either [[Adepts]] do not exist at all; or<br />
<br />
(2) If they do, they have no connection with our [[Theosophical Society|Society]], and therefore we are dishonest impostors; or<br />
<br />
(3) If they have any connection with the [[Theosophical Society|Society]], it must be only those of a very low degree, since, under their management, such errors occurred.<br />
<br />
With the few noble exceptions who had entire confidence in us, our Native Members came to one of these three conclusions. It is therefore necessary in my opinion<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/14A-1_7315.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/14A-1_7315_thm.jpg]<br />
<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* <br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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that prompt measures should be adopted to remove these suspicions. For this, I see only one alternative: — (1) Either the entire [[Theosophical Society|Society]] should be devoted to [[occultism]], in which case it should be quite as secret as the [[Freemasonry|Masonic]] or the [[Rosicrucianism|Rosicrucian]] Lodge or, (2) Nobody should know anything about [[occultism]] except those very few who may have by their conduct shown their determination to devote themselves to its study. The first alternative being found inadvisable by our "[[Brothers]]" and positively forbidden, the second remains.<br />
<br />
Another important question is that of the admission of Members. Until now, any one who expressed a desire to join and could get two sponsors was allowed to come into the [[Theosophical Society|Society]], without our enquiring closely what the motives in joining were. This led to two evil results. People thought or pretended to think that we took in Members simply for their Initiation Fees on which we lived; and many joined out of mere curiosity, as they thought that by paying an Initiation Fee of Rupees Ten, they could see [[phenomena]]. And when they were disappointed in this, they turned round on us, and began to revile our CAUSE for which we have been working and to which we have pledged our lives. The best way to remedy this evil would be to exclude this class of persons. The question naturally arises how can this be done, since our Rules are so liberal as to admit every one? But, at the same time our Rules prescribe an Initiation Fee of Rupees Ten. This is too low to keep out the curiosity seekers, who, for the chance of being satisfied, feel they can very well afford to lose such a paltry sum. The fee should therefore be so much increased that those only would join who are really in earnest. We need men of principle and serious purpose. One such man can do more for us than hundreds of [[phenomena]]-hunters. The fee should in my judgment be increased to Rs: 200 or Rs: 300. It might be urged that thus we might exclude really good men who may be sincere and earnest but unable to pay. But I think it is preferable to risk the possible loss of one good man than take in a crowd of idlers, one of whom can undo the work of all the former. And yet, even this contingency can be avoided. For, as now we admit some to membership, who appear especially deserving, without their paying their own fees, so could the same thing be done under the proposed change.<br />
<br />
[[Damodar K. Mavalankar]], F.T.S.<br />
<br />
Respectfully submitted to the consideration of [[A. P. Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]].<br />
<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/14A-2_7316.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/14A-2_7316_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* <br />
<br />
{{Col-end}}<br />
<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
[[A. P. Sinnett]] was sincerely interested in the welfare of the [[Theosophical Society]], of which he was Vice-President at the time. He had asked for some suggestions about its Rules and organization, and Letter 14a contains [[Damodar K. Mavalankar]]’s suggestions.<br />
<br />
Damodar was an important figure in the early days of the T.S. He was living with [[Founders#The Founders|the Founders]] at the Bombay headquarters helping with the work.<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 53.</ref> He was a [[chela]] of the [[Koot Hoomi|Mahatma K.H.]] and eventually went to Tibet to join the [[Masters of Wisdom|Masters]]. <br />
<br />
In the [[Mahatma Letter No. 15|next letter]], Master K.H. explains the reason for this one.<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 6. No description was obtained by [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]].<br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
<br />
[[es:Carta de los Mahatmas No. 14a]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mahatma_Letter_No._12&diff=35286Mahatma Letter No. 122018-01-30T18:20:09Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: /* Physical description of letter */ Correction name reference to CM-9</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:ML from Koot Hoomi]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs publication history]]<br />
[[Category:ML needs commentary]]<br />
{{Infobox MLbox<br />
| header1 = People involved |<br />
| writtenby = [[Koot Hoomi]]<br />
| receivedby = [[A. P. Sinnett]]<br />
| sentvia = "a young chela" See [[Mahatma Letter No. 12#Context and background|below]].<br />
| header2 = Dates<br />
| writtendate = unknown<br />
| receiveddate = December 10, 1880 See [[Mahatma Letter No. 12#Context and background|below]].<br />
| otherdate = none<br />
| header3 = Places<br />
| sentfrom = unknown<br />
| receivedat = [[Allahabad, India]]<br />
| vialocation = none<br />
}}<br />
'''This is Letter No. 6 in Barker numbering.''' [[Koot Hoomi]] discusses methods of communication, the character of [[A. O. Hume]], and [[Planetary Spirit|Planetary Spirits]]. See below for [[Mahatma Letter No. 12#Context and background|Context and background]].<br />
<br><br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 11|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter chrono]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 13|Next letter chrono'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
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<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 10|'''<nowiki> < </nowiki>'''Prev letter Barker]]</big>{{pad|3em}}<br />
<big>[[Mahatma Letter No. 13|Next letter Barker'''<nowiki> > </nowiki>''']]</big> <br />
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== Page 1 transcription, image, and notes ==<br />
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No — you do not "write too much." I am only sorry to have so little time at my disposal; hence — to find myself unable to answer you as speedily as I otherwise would. Of course I have to read every word you write: otherwise I would make a fine mess of it. And whether it be through my physical or spiritual eyes the time required for it is practically the same. As much may be said of my replies. For, whether I "[[Precipitation|precipitate]]" or dictate them or write my answers myself, the difference in time saved is very minute. I have to think it over, to photograph every word and sentence carefully in my brain before it can be repeated by "[[precipitation]]." As the fixing on chemically prepared surfaces of the images formed by the camera requires a previous arrangement within the focus of the object to be represented, for otherwise — as often found in bad photographs — the legs of the sitter might appear out of all proportion with the head, and so on, so we have to first arrange our sentences and impress every letter to appear on paper in our minds before it becomes fit to be read. For the<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/12-1_6064.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/12-1_6064_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* <br />
<br />
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== Page 2 ==<br />
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present, it is all I can tell you. When science will have learned more about the mystery of the lithophyl (or lithobiblion) and how the impress of leaves comes originally to take place on stones, then will I be able to make you better understand the process. But you must know and remember one thing: we but follow and servilely copy nature in her works.<br />
<br />
No; we need argue no longer upon the unfortunate question of a "Day with [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mad. B.]]" It is the more useless, since you say, you have no right to crush and grind your uncivil and often blackguardly opponents in the "[[The Pioneer (periodical)|Pioneer]]" — even in your own defence — your proprietors objecting to the mention of [[occultism]] altogether. As they are [[Christianity|Christians]] it is no matter of great wonder. Let us be charitable and hope they will get their own reward: die and become angels of right and Truth — winged paupers of the [[Christianity|Christians]] heaven.<br />
<br />
Unless you join several, and organize somehow or other, I am afraid I will prove but of little help for you practically. My dear friend, I have my "proprietors" also.<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/12-2_6065.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/12-2_6065_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* In Webster's 1828 English Dictionary the word '''lithophyl''' is defined as: "Bibliolite or lithobiblion, fossil leaves, or the figures of leaves on fossils."<br />
* '''"A Day with Madame Blavatsky"''' is an article written by [[H. S. Olcott]] about the Simla phenomena, which caused much trouble. For more information see [[Mahatma_Letter_No._5#Context_and_background|Letter No. 5]].<br />
<br />
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== Page 3 ==<br />
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For reasons best known to themselves they have set their foot upon the idea of teaching isolated individuals. I will correspond with you and give you proofs from time to time of my existence and presence. To teach or instruct you — is altogether another question. Hence to sit with your lady is more than useless. Your magnetisms are too similar and — you will get nothing.<br />
<br />
I will translate my Essay and send it to you as soon as I can. Your idea of corresponding with your friends and fellows is the next best thing to do. But do not fail to write to Lord Lindsay.<br />
<br />
I am a little "too hard" upon [[A. O. Hume|Hume]], you say. Am I? His is a highly intellectual and, I confess, a spiritual nature too. Yet, he is every bit of him "Sir Oracle." It may be that it is the very exuberance of that great intellect which seeks issue through every chink, and never loses an opportunity to relieve the fulness of the brain, which overflows with thought. Finding in his quiet daily life too meagre a field with but "Moggy" and Davison to sow upon — his intellect bursts the dam and pounces upon every imagined event,<br />
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[http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/12-3_6066.jpg http://www.theosophy.wiki/mywiki/images/ML/12-3_6066_thm.jpg]<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"To sit with your lady"''' may be referring to a method of psychic development. At the time, Spiritualist trained their mediums through circles in which people would "sit for development."<br />
* '''"Moggy"''' refers to Hume’s wife, who was his personal secretary.<br />
<br />
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== Page 4 ==<br />
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every possible though improbable fact his imagination can suggest, to interpret it in his own conjectural way. Nor do I wonder that such a skilled workman in intellectual mosaic as he, finding suddenly, the most fertile of quarries, the most precious of colour-stores in this idea of our [[Brotherhood of Adepts|Fraternity]] and the [[Theosophical Society|T.S.]] — should pick out ingredients from it to daub our faces with. Placing us before a mirror which reflects us as he finds us in his own fertile imagination he says: "Now, you mouldy relics of a mouldy Past, look at yourselves how you really are!" A very, very excellent man our friend [[A. O. Hume|Mr. Hume]], but utterly unfit for moulding into an [[adept]].<br />
<br />
As little, and far less than yourself does he seem to realize our real object in the formation of an A.I. Branch. The truths and mysteries of [[occultism]] constitute, indeed, a body of the highest spiritual importance, at once profound and practical for the world at large. Yet, it is not as a mere addition to the tangled mass of theory or speculation in the world of science that they are being given to you, but for their practical<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
*<br />
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== Page 5 ==<br />
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bearing on the interests of mankind. The terms "unscientific," "impossible," "hallucination," "impostor," have hitherto been used in a very loose, careless way, as implying in the [[phenomena|occult phenomena]] something either mysterious and abnormal, or a premeditated imposture. And this is why our chiefs have determined to shed upon a few recipient minds more light upon the subject, and to prove to them that such manifestations are as reducible to law as the simplest phenomena of the physical universe. The wiseacres say: "The age of miracles is past," but we answer, "it never existed!" While not unparalleled, or without their counterpart in universal history, these [[phenomena]] must and WILL come with an overpowering influence upon the world of sceptics and bigots. They have to prove both destructive and constructive — destructive in the pernicious errors of the past, in the old creeds and superstitions which suffocate in their poisonous embrace like the Mexican weed nigh all mankind; but constructive of new institutions of a genuine, practical [[Universal Brotherhood|Brotherhood of Humanity]] where all will become co-workers of nature, will work for the good of mankind<br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"Mexican weed"''' may refer to cannabis, though in India it was known under other traditional names. It could also refer to the "Jimson weed" (Datura stramonium), a powerful hallucinogen and deliriant of Mexican origin that is fatally toxic in only slightly higher amounts than the medicinal dosage.<br />
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== Page 6 ==<br />
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with and through the higher [[planetary Spirit]]s — the only "Spirits" we believe in. Phenomenal elements, previously unthought of — undreamt of — will soon begin manifesting themselves day by day with constantly augmented force, and disclose at last the secrets of their mysterious workings. [[Plato]] was right: ideas rule the world; and, as men's minds will receive new ideas, laying aside the old and effete, the world will advance: mighty revolutions will spring from them; creeds and even powers will crumble before their onward march crushed by the irresistible force. It will be just as impossible to resist their influx, when the time comes, as to stay the progress of the tide. But all this will come gradually on, and before it comes we have a duty set before us; that of sweeping away as much as possible the dross left to us by our pious forefathers. New ideas have to be planted on clean places, for these ideas touch upon the most momentous subjects. It is not physical [[phenomena]] but these universal ideas that we study, as to comprehend the former, we have to first understand the latter. <br />
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'''NOTES:'''<br />
* '''"Plato was right"'''. What follows omits several passages of the Master’s original letter due to the inexperience of the [[chela]] [[precipitation|precipitating]] the letter, and other factors (see [[Mahatma Letter No. 117#Page_12|Mahatma Letter No. 117]]). This letter will give rise to the [[Henry Kiddle#The_Kiddle_Incident|"Kiddle Incident"]].<br />
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They touch man's true position in the universe, in relation to his previous and future births; his origin and ultimate destiny; the relation of the mortal to the immortal; of the temporary to the eternal; of the finite to the infinite; ideas larger, grander, more comprehensive, recognising the universal reign of Immutable Law, unchanging and unchangeable in regard to which there is only an ETERNAL Now, while to [[Initiation|uninitiated]] mortals [[time]] is past or future as related to their finite existence on this material speck of dirt. This is what we study and what many have solved.<br />
<br />
And now it is your province to decide which will you have: the highest philosophy or simple exhibitions of [[occult powers]]. Of course this is by far not the last word between us and — you will have time to think it over. The Chiefs want a "Brotherhood of Humanity," a real [[Universal Brotherhood|Universal Fraternity]] started; an institution which would make itself known throughout the world and arrest the attention of the highest minds. I will send you my Essay. Will you be my co-worker and patiently wait for <br />
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minor [[phenomena]]? I think I foresee the answer. At all events the holy lamp of spiritual light burning in you (however dimly) there is hope for you, and — for me, also. Yes; put yourself in search after natives if there are no English people to be had. But think you, the spirit and power of persecution gone from this enlightened age? Time will prove. Meanwhile, being human I have to rest. I took no sleep for over 60 hours.<br />
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Ever yours truly,<br />
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[[Koot Hoomi|KOOT' HOOMI]].<br />
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<br />
== Context and background ==<br />
<br />
This is an important letter because it gave rise to what is known as [[Henry Kiddle#The_Kiddle_Incident|"The Kiddle Incident"]]. When [[A. P. Sinnett]] publishes his book [[The Occult World (book)|''The Occult World'']] in 1881, he quotes this letter from the passage beginning "Plato was right, ideas rule the world . . ." Spiritualist Henry Kiddle, reading the book, discovers that this letter contains unacknowledged sentences uttered by him in August 1880, which prompted his accusation of plagiarism. For more information see [[Mahatma Letter No. 117]].<br />
<br />
== Physical description of letter ==<br />
<br />
The original is in the British Library, Folio 1. According to [[George Linton]] and [[Virginia Hanson]], the letter was written "In blue ink on both sides of four full-sized sheets of white paper. The signature has a circle drawn completely around it, similar to that of [[Mahatma Letter No. 9|ML-9]]."<ref>George E. Linton and Virginia Hanson, eds., ''Readers Guide to The Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett'' (Adyar, Chennai, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 50.</ref><br />
<br />
== Publication history ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Commentary about this letter ==<br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br><br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Alaya&diff=33656Alaya2017-07-28T15:03:16Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Alaya''' (devanāgarī: आलय Ālaya) is a [[Sanskrit]] word meaning "abode, dwelling." In the [[Yogacara]] school of [[Buddhism]] it is usually employed in connection with the word ''vijñāna'' (consciousness) as ''ālayavijñāna'' ("store-house consciousness"). In [[Theosophy]] it refers to the sixth universal [[principle]], the universal soul. <br />
<br />
In the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] view, Alaya is regarded as the Universal Soul as the basis of all. In the listing of [[Plane#Macrocosmic or Solar planes|cosmic planes]], Alaya is regarded as the sixth one (counting from the lowest plane "upwards"). However, it is also reflected on the corresponding [[Plane#Prakritic planes|Prakritic planes]]. In human beings, [[buddhi]] is regarded as a ray of Alaya.<br />
<br />
The terms [[anima mundi]] and [[over-soul]]<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 48.</ref> are frequently used as a synonym for ālaya.<br />
<br />
== General description ==<br />
<br />
[[H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>What is the belief of the inner [[Esoteric Philosophy|esoteric Schools]]? the reader may ask. What are the doctrines taught on this subject by the Esoteric “Buddhists”? With them “Alaya” has a double and even a triple meaning. In the [[Yogācāra|Yogacharya]] system of the contemplative [[Mahāyāna Buddhism|Mahayana school]], Alaya is both the Universal Soul ([[Anima Mundi]]) and the Self of a progressed [[adept]]. “He who is strong in the Yoga can introduce at will his Alaya by means of meditation into the true Nature of Existence.” The “Alaya has an absolute eternal existence,” says Aryasanga.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 49.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
She defined ālaya as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Universal Soul (See Secret Doctrine Vol. I. pp. 47 et seq.). The name belongs to the Tibetan system of the contemplative Mahâyâna School. Identical with Âkâsa in its mystic sense, and with Mûlaprakriti, in its essence, as it is the basis or root of all things.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 14.</ref></blockquote><br />
[[File:Seven Planes - HPB.JPG|right|150px|thumb|Seven cosmic planes according to H. P. Blavatsky]]<br />
When describing the [[Planes#Macrocosmic or Solar planes|cosmic planes]], [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] makes ālaya the sixth. In the quote above she says that it is identical with [[ākāśa]] (the fifth cosmic principle) "in its mystic sense." [[Mūlaprakṛti]], being ālaya's essence, can be regarded as the [[seventh principle|seventh cosmic principle]]. All this on the side of [[matter]] or substance.<br />
<br />
[[Mahat]], the Universal Mind, is said to be the [[manvantara|manvantaric]] aspect of alaya, the Universal Soul.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 636.</ref> And just as the sixth and fifth principles in human beings ([[buddhi]] and [[manas]]) are frequently referred to as working together, we find similar references applied to these cosmic principles, such as the phrases Alaya-Akasha<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 371.</ref> or Alaya-Mahat.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 313.</ref><br />
<br />
The cosmic Alaya is reflected on the corresponding [[Plane#Prakritic planes|Prakritic planes]], which are within the reach real Yogis:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Alaya, though eternal and changeless in its inner essence on the planes which are unreachable by either men or Cosmic Gods (Dhyani Buddhas), alters during the active life-period with respect to the lower planes, ours included. During that time not only the Dhyani-Buddhas are one with Alaya in Soul and Essence, but even the man strong in the Yoga (mystic meditation) “is able to merge his soul with it” (Aryâsanga, the Bumapa school). This is not Nirvana, but a condition next to it.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 48.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
=== The Master Soul ===<br />
<br />
In [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]]'s writings, man's sixth principle ([[buddhi]]) is regarded as "a ray of the Universal Spiritual Soul (Alaya)":<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 607.</ref><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Buddhi stands to the divine Root-Essence in the same relation as [[Mulaprakriti]] to Parabrahman, in the Vedânta School; or as Alaya, the Universal Soul, to the One Eternal Spirit, or that which is beyond Spirit.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 603.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In mystical treatises such as [[The Voice of the Silence (book)|''The Voice of the Silence'']] ālaya is said to be the "Master-Soul", in whom the mystic has to dwell:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Of teachers there are many; the MASTER-SOUL is one, Alaya, the Universal Soul. Live in that MASTER as Its ray in thee. Live in thy fellows as they live in It.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Voice of the Silence'' (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1992), 49-50.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
However, although ālaya is in every human being, very few are able to get in touch with it:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Alas, alas, that all men should possess Alaya, be one with the great Soul, and that possessing it, Alaya should so little avail them!<br><br />
Behold how like the moon, reflected in the tranquil waves, Alaya is reflected by the small and by the great, is mirrored in the tiniest atoms, yet fails to reach the heart of all. Alas, that so few men should profit by the gift, the priceless boon of learning truth, the right perception of existing things, the Knowledge of the non-existent!<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Voice of the Silence'' (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1992), 24.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The difficulty lies in the fact that ālaya can only be reflected in a highly spiritual and passionless mind:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Ālaya, or Nying-po, being the root and basis of all, invisible and incomprehensible to human eye and intellect, it can reflect only its reflection—not Itself. Thus that reflection will be mirrored like the moon in tranquil and clear water only in the passionless [[Dharmakāya]] intellect, and will be distorted by the flitting image of everything perceived in a mind that is itself liable to be disturbed.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XIV (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1995), 439.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The ultimate aim of the mystic is "to be able to identify himself with and to merge himself into it".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Voice of the Silence'' (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1992), 88.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== In Buddhism ==<br />
<br />
In Tibetan Buddhism the term Ālaya is taken as a "universal ground" (Tib. ''kun gzhi'') with the quality of "pristine awareness", called [[Yogācāra#Eighth consciousness|''Ālayavijñāna'']] (Tib. ''kun gzhi ye shes'').<ref>[http://54-209.bluehost.com/bbs/viewthread.php?action=printable&tid=6240&sid=890A9F# Tibetan Zhentong Discourse I] at shilun.org</ref><br />
<br />
See also: [[Yogācāra#Eighth consciousness|Ālayavijñāna]]<br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=%C4%80laya# Ālaya] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1267# Alaya's Self] by Sue Prescott<br />
===Books===<br />
*[http://www.misterdanger.net/books/Buddhism%20Books/The%20buddhist%20unconscious.pdf# The Buddhist Unconscious. The alaya-vijñana in the context of Indian Buddhist thought] by W. S. Waldron.<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Buddhist concepts]]<br />
[[es:Alaya]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Metempsychosis&diff=33655Metempsychosis2017-07-28T14:54:56Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Metempsychosis''' (μετεμψύχωσις) is a philosophical term in the [[Greek|Greek language]] referring to the transmigration or re-birth of the soul after death. The earliest Greek thinker with whom metempsychosis is connected is Pherecydes of Syros;<ref>Schibli, S., Hermann, Pherekydes of Syros, p. 104, Oxford Univ. Press 2001</ref> but [[Pythagoras]], who is said to have been his pupil, is its first famous philosophic exponent. The importance of metempsychosis in Western tradition is largely due to its adoption by [[Plato]]. In his view the number of souls is fixed (not created at birth), and they transmigrate from one body to another.<ref>Benjamin Jowett Edition: 3, ''The Republic of Plato'' X, (London: Paternoster Square, [1894?]), 280-309.</ref> The idea persisted in antiquity down to the latest classic thinkers, [[Plotinus]] and the other [[Neoplatonism|Neoplatonists]].<br />
<br />
In the common interpretation, the phenomenon of metempsychosis includes the possibility of a [[Soul#Human soul|human soul]] being reborn as an animal, or even a plant. This idea in the East is frequently known under the term of "transmigration". <br />
<br />
In early Theosophical writings the term was used as a synonym of [[reincarnation]]. However, modern [[Theosophy]] opposes the idea that a [[Soul#Human soul|human soul]] can be reborn in an animal or plant. This teaching is interpreted as being an allegory of the fact that if the [[Principle#Individuality and personality|personality]] indulges in animal tendencies, the [[Ego]] will be reincarnated in a new personality with "animal-like" characteristics. It also points out to the idea that, by attracting [[Life-Atom|"atoms"]] in tune with the animal passions, after death they can be absorbed by animals, which produces undesirable [[Karma|karmic]] effects on the reincarnating Ego.<br />
<br />
==Theosophical view==<br />
<br />
In Greece the term metempsychosis was traditionally understood as the "transmigration of the human Soul into an animal form". [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote about this in a more or less systematic way first in her book [[Isis Unveiled (book)|''Isis Unveiled'']]. Here, she stated that this idea is a misinterpretation of the esoteric tenet. She defined the term as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The progress of the soul from one stage of existence to another. Symbolized and vulgarly believed to be rebirths in animal bodies. A term generally misunderstood by every class of European and American society, including many scientists.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Isis Unveiled'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), xxxvi-xxxvii.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The purifying process of transmigrations—the metempsychoses—however grossly anthropomorphized at a later period, must only be regarded as a supplementary doctrine, disfigured by theological sophistry with the object of getting a firmer hold upon believers through a popular superstition. Neither Gautama Buddha nor Pythagoras intended to teach this purely-metaphysical allegory literally.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Isis Unveiled'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 289.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Later in the book, Mme. Blavatsky gives a hint as to what this "purely-metaphysical allegory" may mean:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Must this be taken literally; is it intended as a description of the actual transformations and existence of one and the same individual immortal, divine spirit, which by turns has animated every kind of sentient being? Ought we not rather to understand, with Buddhist metaphysicians, that though the individual human spirits are numberless, collectively they are one . . . for each human spirit is a scintilla of the one all-pervading light? That this divine spirit animates the flower, the particle of granite on the mountain side, the lion, the man?<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Isis Unveiled'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 291.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
She suggests that, esoterically, the doctrine of metempsychosis did not really mean that the [[Soul#Human soul|human soul]] can be reborn in animals or vegetables. It was a reference to the idea that ''life'' (or, more specifically, the later concept of [[Life-Wave|"life-wave"]]) evolves through the different [[Kingdoms of Life|kingdoms]]: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>If the Pythagorean metempsychosis should be thoroughly explained and compared with the modern theory of evolution, it would be found to supply every “missing link” in the chain of the latter.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Isis Unveiled'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1972), 9.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In later writings Mme. Blavatsky gave more details as to why the "purely exoteric doctrine of transmigrations into animals" is "absurd, in philosophy".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 137.</ref> She explained it as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Nature, propelled by [[Karma]], never recedes, but strives ever forward in her work on the physical plane; that she may lodge a human soul in the body of a man, morally ten times lower than any animal, but she will not reverse the order of her [[Kingdoms of Life|kingdoms]]; and while leading the irrational [[monad]] of a beast of a higher order into the human form at the first hour of a [[Manvantara]], she will not guide that [[Ego]], once it has become a man, even of the lowest kind, back into the animal species. . .<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 137-138.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
As she went on publishing more detailed information about [[evolution]] and [[Life after Death|life after death]] she added another interpretation to the allegorical teaching of transmigration in animals, said to be taught by spiritual teachers in India and Greece:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>None of them addressed himself to the profane, but only to their own followers and disciples, who knew too much of the symbological element used even during public instruction to fail to understand the meaning of their respective Masters. Thus they were aware that the words metempsychosis and transmigration meant simply reincarnation from one human body to another, when this teaching concerned a human being; and that every allusion of this or another sage, like Pythagoras, to having been in a previous birth a beast, or of transmigrating after death into an animal, was allegorical and related to the spiritual states of the human soul.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1989), 205.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
According to her, saying that the soul was going to be reincarnated in a particular animal was a metaphorical reference "to the physiological vice in store for the Soul when re-incarnated—a vice that will lead that personality into a thousand and one scrapes and mis-adventures".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 111.</ref> Here, different animals symbolized specific tendencies such as anger, lust, sloth, etc.<br />
<br />
Thus, in later writings she suggested the term "metempsychosis" should be applied to animals alone, probably referring to the successive overshadowing of the non-human [[Monad]] of different animal forms.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 214.</ref><br />
<br />
=== Transmigration of atoms ===<br />
<br />
Mme. Blavatsky explored another meaning of this teaching. She wrote about "the Hindu doctrine of Metempsychosis":<br />
<br />
<blockquote>It has a basis of truth; and, in fact, it is an axiomatic truth—but only in reference to human atoms and emanations, and that not only after a man’s death, but during the whole period of his life.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. V (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 114.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This has to do with the teaching about the constant interchange of "atoms" between beings and objects, including not only the ones known by science, but also the occult [[Life-Atom|"life-atoms"]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>[T]he magnetic fluid projected by a living human body is life itself. “Indeed it is life atoms” that a man in a blind passion throws off, unconsciously, and though he does it quite as effectively as a [[Mesmerism|mesmeriser]] who transfers them from himself to any object consciously and under the guidance of his will. Let any man give way to any intense feeling, such as anger, grief, etc., under or near a tree, or in direct contact with a stone; and many thousands of years after that any tolerable [[Psychometry|Psychometer]] will see the man and sense his feelings from one single fragment of that tree or stone that he had touched. Hold any object in your hand, and it will become impregnated with your life atoms, indrawn and outdrawn, changed and transferred in us at every instant of our lives. Animal heat is but so many life atoms in molecular motion. It requires no [[adept]] knowledge, but simply the natural gift of a good [[Clairvoyance|clairvoyant]] subject to see them passing to and fro, from man to objects and vice versa like a bluish lambent flame.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. V (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1997), 115-116.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Thus, Mme. Blavatsky writes:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The esoteric meaning of the ''Laws of Manu'' . . . that “A Brahman-killer enters the body of a dog, bear, ass, camel, goat, sheep, bird, &c.,” bears no reference to the [[Ego|human Ego]], but only to the atoms of his body, of his lower triad and his fluidic emanations. . . [B]y “Brahman,” man’s seventh [[principle]], his immortal [[monad]] and the essence of the personal Ego were allegorically meant. He who kills or extinguishes in himself the light of [[Parabrahman|Parabrahm]], i.e., severs his personal Ego from the [[Ātman|Atman]] and thus kills the future [[Devachan|Devachanee]], becomes a “Brahman-killer.” Instead of facilitating through a virtuous life and spiritual aspirations the mutual union of the [[Buddhi]] and the [[Manas]], he condemns by his own evil acts every atom of his lower principles to become attracted and drawn in virtue of the magnetic affinity, thus created by his passions, into the forming bodies of lower animals or brutes. This is the real meaning of the doctrine of Metempsychosis. It is not that such amalgamation of human particles with animal or even vegetable atoms can carry in it any idea of personal punishment per se, for of course it does not. But it is a cause created, the effects of which may manifest themselves throughout the next [[Reincarnation|rebirths]]—unless the [[Avichi|personality is annihilated]]. Otherwise from cause to effect, every effect becoming in its turn a cause, they will run along the cycle of re-births, the once given impulse expending itself only at the threshold of [[Pralaya]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. V (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 114-115.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Metempsychosis in Greek thought ==<br />
<br />
== Transmigration in Hinduism ==<br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Metempsychosis# Metempsychosis] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/TransmigrationOfTheLifeAtoms.htm# Transmigration of the Life Atoms] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/transmigration-of-souls.htm# Transmigration of Souls] by William Q. Judge<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Greek terms]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Metempsicosis]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Matter&diff=33654Matter2017-07-28T14:50:15Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Matter''', in the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] view, is a manifestation of the One Principle beyond the range and reach of thought, the [[Absolute]]. Matter, as well as [[spirit]], are just aspects of this Principle, though they appear to our perception as being different:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>[[Spirit]], [[life]] and matter, are not natural principles existing independently of each other, but the effects of combinations produced by eternal [[motion]] in [[Space]].<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 93b (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 317.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== General description ==<br />
<br />
According to [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]], what we call "matter" is the phenomena that appears to our consciousness, "[[substance]]" being its [[noumenon]] or cause:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>In strict accuracy—to avoid confusion and mis-conception—the term “Matter” ought to be applied to the aggregate of objects of possible perception, and “Substance” to noumena; for inasmuch as the phenomena of our plane are the creation of the perceiving [[Ego]]—the modifications of its own subjectivity—all the “states of matter representing the aggregate of perceived objects” can have but a relative and purely phenomenal existence for the children of our plane. As the modern [[Idealism|Idealists]] would say, the co-operation of Subject and Object results in the Sense-object or phenomenon.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 329.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
She explained that the [[Occultism|occult]] concept of matter is not limited to what can be perceived on the physical [[plane]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Matter, to the Occultist, it must be remembered, is that totality of existences in the Kosmos, which falls within any of the planes of possible perception.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 514.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Thus, in its ultimate nature, matter is not different from [[spirit]]. In [[Mahatma Letter No. 90|one of his letters]], [[Koot Hoomi| Mahatma K.H.]] wrote to [[A. O. Hume]]:<br />
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<blockquote>The conception of matter and spirit as entirely distinct, and both [[Eternity|eternal]] could certainly never have entered my head, however little I may know of them, for it is one of the elementary and fundamental doctrines of [[Occultism]] that the two are one, and are distinct but in their respective manifestations, and only in the limited perceptions of the world of senses.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 90 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>In the book of [[Tibetan Buddhist canon#Tantras|Kiu-te]], [[Spirit]] is called the ultimate sublimation of matter, and matter the crystallization of spirit. And no better illustration could be afforded than in the very simple phenomenon of ice, water, vapour and the final dispersion of the latter, the phenomenon being reversed in its consecutive manifestations and called the Spirit falling into generation or matter.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 90 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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About this, [[W. Q. Judge]] wrote:<br />
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<blockquote>Theosophy postulates an eternal principle called the unknown . . . The perceived universe is the manifestation of this unknown, including spirit and matter, for Theosophy holds that those are but the two opposite poles of the one unknown principle. They coexist, are not separate nor separable from each other, or, as the Hindu scriptures say, there is no particle of matter without spirit, and no particle of spirit without matter.<ref>William Quan Judge, ''Theosophy Generally Stated'' ??????</ref></blockquote><br />
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For this reason, matter in its essence (sometimes called "substance"), is seen as [[eternal]]. [[Koot Hoomi|Mahatma K.H.]] wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Matter we know to be eternal, i.e., having had no beginning (a) because matter is Nature herself (b) because that which cannot annihilate itself and is indestructible exists necessarily — and therefore it could not begin to be, nor can it cease to be (c) because the accumulated experience of countless ages, and that of exact science show to us matter (or nature) acting by her own peculiar energy, of which not an atom is ever in an absolute state of rest, and therefore it must have always existed, i.e., its materials ever changing form, combinations and properties, but its principles or elements being absolutely indestructible.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 88 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 272.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Spirit (or life) and matter being the two aspects of the same [[principle]], there is no matter without spirit (or life), and no spirit without matter of some kind. [[H. P. Blavatsky]] is reported to have said:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>There is no dead matter. Every last atom is alive. It cannot be otherwise since every atom is itself fundamentally Absolute Being. Therefore there is no such thing as ‘spaces’ of Ether, or Akasha, or call it what you like, in which angels and elementals disport themselves like trout in water. That’s a common idea. The true idea shows every atom of substance no matter of what plane to be in itself a LIFE.<ref>Robert Bowen, ''Madame Blavatsky on How to Study Theosophy'' (Wheaton, Il: Theosophical Society in America, [1989?]), 9.</ref></blockquote><br />
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[[Theosophy]] postulates the existence of different states of matter, from the highest [[cosmic matter]] down to the physical matter, forming [[seven planes]] "each more dense on the way down to the plane of our senses than its predecessor, the substance in all being the same only differing in degree."<ref>William Quan Judge, ''Theosophy Generally Stated''??????</ref> All forms of matter are differentiations of a primordial one element, differentiation that is ultimately a [[māyā]] or illusion:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The homogeneous primordial Element is simple and single only on the terrestrial plane of consciousness and sensation, since matter, after all, is nothing else than the sequence of our own states of consciousness, and Spirit an idea of psychic intuition. Even on the next higher plane, that single element which is defined on our earth by current science, as the ultimate undecomposable constituent of some kind of matter, would be pronounced in the world of a higher spiritual perception as something very complex indeed.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1978), 542.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Differentiation of matter ==<br />
<br />
The highest state of matter (many times referred to as "substance") is [[Mulaprakriti]], variously called "primordial cosmic substance"<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1979), 24.</ref>, "undiferentiated cosmic substance"<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 75.</ref>, [[Substance#Pre-cosmic_substance|Pre-cosmic substance]], the root of matter, etc. During the [[manvantara|manvantaric]] impulse it becomes [[svabhavat]], and later [[akasha]] or the "cosmic substance". Further on this becomes [[cosmic matter]], which differentiates into the different manifested [[planes]].<br />
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The [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza I|Stanza I.1]] states that before the re-awakening of the universe the "[[Space#Pre-Cosmic space|eternal parent]]" was "wrapped in her ever invisible robes." According to Mme. Blavatsky, the robes refer to "the substance . . . on the seventh plane of matter counting upwards, or rather from without within."<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 35.</ref><br />
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The opposite process, that of coming back to the source substance, was described by [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] in [[Mahatma Letter No. 90#Page 19|one of his letters]] as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>There is a moment in the existence of every molecule and atom of matter when, for one cause or another, the last spark of [[spirit]] or [[motion]] or [[life]] (call it by whatever name) is withdrawn, and in the same instant with the swiftness which surpasses that of the lightning glance of thought the atom or molecule or an aggregation of molecules is annihilated to return to its pristine purity of intra-cosmic matter. It is drawn to the mother fount with the velocity of a globule of quicksilver to the central mass.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 90 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 283.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Physical matter ==<br />
<br />
At the end of the nineteenth century, the atoms were thought to be like small, hard, indivisible, "balls" of matter, with no motion. In 1888, [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] quotes Professor Philip Spiller who wrote that "no atom, is in itself originally endowed with force, but that every such atom is absolutely dead, and without any power to act at a distance". To this, she commented:<br />
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<blockquote>Occultism says that in all cases when matter appears inert, it is the most active. A wooden or a stone block is motionless and impenetrable to all intents and purposes. Nevertheless, and de facto, its particles are in ceaseless eternal vibration which is so rapid that to the physical eye the body seems absolutely devoid of motion; and the spacial distance between those particles in their vibratory motion is—considered from another plane of being and perception—as great as that which separates snow flakes or drops of rain. But to physical science this will be an absurdity.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), fn., 507-508.</ref></blockquote><br />
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This was proved by [[Science]] in the following decades. In 1897, Physicist J. J. Thomson discovered the electron through his work on [[Radiant Matter|cathode rays]], thus overturning the belief that atoms were indivisible. In 1909 it was suggested that most the atom's mass was concentrated in a nucleus at the center of it, with electrons fast-moving around. After the 1920's the radius of the atoms began to be measured and it was discovered that most of the atom's volume consisted of empty space.<br />
<br />
Mme. Blavatsky also proposed that the atoms can be divided "ad infinitum", which makes them "simple centers of force", a concept very close to the current one in Science:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The atom is elastic, ergo, the atom is divisible, and must consist of particles, or of sub-atoms. And these sub-atoms? They are either non-elastic, and in such case they represent no dynamic importance, or, they are elastic also; and in that case, they, too, are subject to divisibility. And thus ad infinitum, But infinite divisibility of atoms resolves matter into simple centres of force, i.e., precludes the possibility of conceiving matter as an objective substance.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 519.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Materia]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Three_Fundamental_Propositions&diff=33618Three Fundamental Propositions2017-07-27T15:30:40Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>The '''Three Fundamental Propositions''' are three basic postulates on which the book [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']] written by [[H. P. Blavatsky]] is based.<br />
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In the Proem of this book the author says:<br />
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<blockquote>Before the reader proceeds to the consideration of the [[Stanzas of Dzyan|Stanzas]] from the [[Book of Dzyan]] which form the basis of the present work, it is absolutely necessary that he should be made acquainted with the few fundamental conceptions which underlie and pervade the entire system of thought to which his attention is invited. These basic ideas are few in number, and on their clear apprehension depends the understanding of all that follows; therefore no apology is required for asking the reader to make himself familiar with them first, before entering on the perusal of the work itself.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 13</ref></blockquote><br />
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== First Fundamental Proposition ==<br />
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In the Proem of [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']] Mme. Blavatsky wrote:<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 14-16</ref><br />
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<blockquote>An Omnipresent, Eternal, Boundless, and Immutable Principle on which all speculation is impossible, since it transcends the power of human conception and could only be dwarfed by any human expression or similitude. It is beyond the range and reach of thought — in the words of Mandukya, “unthinkable and unspeakable.”<br />
<br><br />
To render these ideas clearer to the general reader, let him set out with the postulate that there is one [[Absolute|absolute Reality]] which antecedes all manifested, conditioned, being. This Infinite and Eternal Cause — dimly formulated in the “Unconscious” and “Unknowable” of current European philosophy — is the rootless root of “all that was, is, or ever shall be.” It is of course devoid of all attributes and is essentially without any relation to manifested, finite Being. It is “[[Be-ness]]” rather than Being (in [[Sanskrit]], [[Sat]]), and is beyond all thought or speculation.<br />
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This “[[Be-ness]]” is symbolised in the [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''Secret Doctrine'']] under two aspects. On the one hand, [[Space#Absolute abstract space|absolute abstract Space]], representing bare subjectivity, the one thing which no human mind can either exclude from any conception, or conceive of by itself. On the other, [[Motion#Absolute abstract motion|absolute Abstract Motion]] representing Unconditioned Consciousness. Even our Western thinkers have shown that [[Consciousness]] is inconceivable to us apart from change, and motion best symbolises change, its essential characteristic. This latter aspect of the one Reality, is also symbolised by the term “The [[Great Breath]],” a symbol sufficiently graphic to need no further elucidation. Thus, then, the first fundamental axiom of the Secret Doctrine is this metaphysical One [[Absolute]] — [[Be-ness]] — symbolised by finite intelligence as the theological Trinity.<br />
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It may, however, assist the student if a few further explanations are given here.<br />
<br><br />
[[Herbert Spencer]] has of late so far modified his Agnosticism, as to assert that the nature of the “First Cause,”(*) which the [[Occultism|Occultist]] more logically derives from the “Causeless Cause,” the “Eternal,” and the “Unknowable,” may be essentially the same as that of the [[Consciousness]] which wells up within us: in short, that the impersonal reality pervading the Kosmos is the pure [[noumenon]] of thought. This advance on his part brings him very near to the [[Esotericism|esoteric]] and [[Vedanta|Vedantin]] tenet.(†)<br />
<br><br />
[[Parabrahm]] (the One Reality, the [[Absolute]]) is the field of Absolute Consciousness, i.e., that Essence which is out of all relation to conditioned existence, and of which conscious existence is a conditioned symbol. But once that we pass in thought from this (to us) Absolute Negation, duality supervenes in the contrast of [[Spirit]] (or consciousness) and [[Matter]], Subject and Object.<br />
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[[Spirit]] (or Consciousness) and [[Matter]] are, however, to be regarded, not as independent realities, but as the two facets or aspects of the [[Absolute]] ([[Parabrahm]]), which constitute the basis of conditioned Being whether subjective or objective.<br />
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Considering this metaphysical triad as the Root from which proceeds all manifestation, the [[great Breath]] assumes the character of [[Logos#First Logos|precosmic Ideation]]. It is the ''fons et origo'' of force and of all individual consciousness, and supplies the guiding intelligence in the vast scheme of cosmic [[Evolution]]. On the other hand, precosmic root-substance ([[Mulaprakriti]]) is that aspect of the [[Absolute]] which underlies all the objective planes of Nature.<br />
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Just as pre-Cosmic Ideation is the root of all individual consciousness, so [[Substance#Pre-cosmic_substance|pre-Cosmic Substance]] is the substratum of [[matter]] in the various grades of its differentiation.<br />
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Hence it will be apparent that the contrast of these two aspects of the [[Absolute]] is essential to the existence of the “Manifested Universe.” Apart from [[Ākāśa|Cosmic Substance]], [[Mahat|Cosmic Ideation]] could not manifest as individual consciousness, since it is only through a [[vehicle]] (‡) of matter that consciousness wells up as “I am I,” a physical basis being necessary to focus a ray of the [[Mahat|Universal Mind]] at a certain stage of complexity. Again, apart from [[Mahat|Cosmic Ideation]], [[Ākāśa|Cosmic Substance]] would remain an empty abstraction, and no emergence of consciousness could ensue.<br />
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The “Manifested Universe,” therefore, is pervaded by duality, which is, as it were, the very essence of its ex-istence as “[[Manvantara|manifestation]].”<br />
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But just as the opposite poles of subject and object, [[spirit]] and [[matter]], are but aspects of the One Unity in which they are synthesized, so, in the manifested Universe, there is “that” which links [[spirit]] to [[matter]], subject to object.<br />
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This something, at present unknown to Western speculation, is called by the [[Occultism|occultists]] [[Fohat]]. It is the “bridge” by which the “Ideas” existing in the “[[Logos#Divine_Thought|Divine Thought]]” are impressed on [[Ākāśa|Cosmic substance]] as the “laws of Nature.” [[Fohat]] is thus the dynamic energy of [[Mahat|Cosmic Ideation]]; or, regarded from the other side, it is the intelligent medium, the guiding power of all manifestation, the “Thought Divine” transmitted and made manifest through the [[Dhyan Chohans]],(§) the Architects of the visible World. Thus from [[Spirit]], or [[Mahat|Cosmic Ideation]], comes our consciousness; from [[Ākāśa|Cosmic Substance]] the several [[vehicles]] in which that consciousness is individualised and attains to self — or reflective — consciousness; while [[Fohat]], in its various manifestations, is the mysterious link between Mind and [[Matter]], the animating principle electrifying every atom into life.<br />
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The following summary will afford a clearer idea to the reader.<br />
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(1.) The [[Absolute]]; the [[Parabrahm]] of the [[Vedanta|Vedantins]] or the one Reality, [[Sat]], which is, as Hegel says, both Absolute Being and Non-Being.<br />
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(2.) The first manifestation, the impersonal, and, in philosophy, [[Logos#First Logos|unmanifested Logos]], the precursor of the “[[Logos#Third Logos|manifested]].” This is the “First Cause,” the “Unconscious” of European Pantheists.<br />
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(3.) Spirit-matter, Life; the “Spirit of the Universe,” the Purusha and Prakriti, or the [[Logos#Second Logos|second Logos]].<br />
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(4.) Cosmic Ideation, [[Mahat]] or Intelligence, the Universal World-Soul; the Cosmic [[Noumenon]] of [[Matter]], the basis of the intelligent operations in and of Nature, also called Maha-Buddhi.<br />
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The One Reality; its dual aspects in the conditioned Universe.</blockquote><br />
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'''[Footnotes by the author]'''<br />
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<blockquote>(*) The “first” presupposes necessarily something which is the “first brought forth,” “the first in time, space, and rank” — and therefore finite and conditioned. The “first” cannot be the absolute, for it is a manifestation. Therefore, Eastern Occultism calls the Abstract All the “Causeless One Cause,” the “Rootless Root,” and limits the “First Cause” to the [[Logos#First Logos|Logos]], in the sense that Plato gives to this term]<br />
<br><br />
(†) See Mr. [[T. Subba Row|Subba Row]]’s four able lectures on the [[Bhagavadgītā (book)|Bhagavad Gita]], “Theosophist,” February, 1887.<br />
<br><br />
(‡) Called in Sanskrit: “[[Upadhi]].”<br />
<br><br />
(§) Called by Christian theology: Archangels, Seraphs, etc., etc.</blockquote><br />
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== Second Fundamental Proposition ==<br />
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According to Mme. Blavatsky, the second fundamental proposition affirms:<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 16-17</ref><br />
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<blockquote>The [[Eternity]] of the Universe ''in toto'' as a boundless plane; periodically “the playground of numberless Universes incessantly manifesting and disappearing,” called “the manifesting stars,” and the “sparks of Eternity.” “The Eternity of the Pilgrim”(*) is like a wink of the Eye of Self-Existence ([[Book of Dzyan]].) “The appearance and disappearance of Worlds is like a regular tidal ebb of flux and reflux.” (See Part II., “Days and Nights of Brahma.”)<br><br />
This second assertion of the Secret Doctrine is the absolute universality of that [[Law of Cycles|law of periodicity]], of flux and reflux, ebb and flow, which physical science has observed and recorded in all departments of nature. An alternation such as that of Day and Night, Life and Death, Sleeping and Waking, is a fact so common, so perfectly universal and without exception, that it is easy to comprehend that in it we see one of the absolutely fundamental laws of the universe.</blockquote><br />
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'''[Footnote by the author]'''<br />
<br />
<blockquote>(*) Pilgrim” is the appellation given to our [[Monad]] (the two in one) during its [[Reincarnation|cycle of incarnations]]. It is the only immortal and eternal [[principle]] in us, being an indivisible part of the integral whole — the Universal [[Spirit]], from which it emanates, and into which it is absorbed at the end of the [[Evolution#Cyclic evolution|cycle]]. When it is said to emanate from the one [[spirit]], an awkward and incorrect expression has to be used, for lack of appropriate words in English. The [[Vedanta|Vedantins]] call it [[Sutratma]] (Thread-Soul), but their explanation, too, differs somewhat from that of the [[Occultism|occultists]]; to explain which difference, however, is left to the [[Vedanta|Vedantins]] themselves.</blockquote><br />
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== Third Fundamental Proposition ==<br />
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Mme. Blavatsky writes that [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']] teaches:<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 17-18</ref><br />
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<blockquote>The fundamental identity of all [[Soul|Souls]] with the Universal [[Over-Soul]], the latter being itself an aspect of the [[Mulaprakriti|Unknown Root]]; and the obligatory pilgrimage for every [[Soul]] — a spark of the former — through the [[Cycle of Incarnation]] (or “Necessity”) in accordance with [[Evolution#Cyclic evolution|Cyclic]] and [[Karma|Karmic]] law, during the whole term. In other words, no purely spiritual [[Buddhi]] (divine Soul) can have an independent (conscious) existence before the spark which issued from the pure Essence of the Universal [[Sixth principle]], — or the [[over-soul]], — has (a) passed through every [[elemental]] form of the phenomenal world of that [[Manvantara]], and (b) acquired [[individuality]], first by natural impulse, and then by self-induced and self-devised efforts (checked by its [[Karma]]), thus ascending through all the degrees of intelligence, from the lowest to the highest [[Manas]], from mineral and plant, up to the holiest [[archangel]] ([[Dhyani-Buddha]]). The pivotal doctrine of the [[Esoteric Philosophy|Esoteric philosophy]] admits no privileges or special gifts in man, save those won by his own [[Ego]] through [[Try!#Individual effort|personal effort]] and merit throughout a long series of [[metempsychosis|metempsychoses]] and [[reincarnation|reincarnations]]. This is why the [[Hinduism|Hindus]] say that the Universe is [[Brahman|Brahma]] and [[Brahmā]], for [[Brahman|Brahma]] is in every atom of the universe, the six [[principles]] in Nature being all the outcome — the variously differentiated aspects — of the [[seventh principle|seventh]] and one, the only reality in the Universe whether Cosmical or [[Microcosmos|micro-cosmical]]; and also why the permutations (psychic, spiritual and physical), on the plane of manifestation and form, of the sixth ([[Brahmā]] the vehicle of [[Brahman|Brahma]]) are viewed by metaphysical antiphrasis as illusive and [[Māyā|Mayavic]]. For although the root of every atom individually and of every form collectively, is that [[seventh principle]] or the one Reality, still, in its manifested phenomenal and temporary appearance, it is no better than an evanescent illusion of our senses. (See, for clearer definition, Addendum “Gods, Monads and Atoms,” and also “Theophania,” “Bodhisatvas and Reincarnation,” etc., etc.)</blockquote><br />
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== Closing remarks ==<br />
<br />
Next follow some remarks that are not really part of the Third Fundamental Proposition but seem to be some closing words:<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 18-20</ref><br />
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<blockquote>In its absoluteness, the One Principle under its two aspects (of [[Parabrahman|Parabrahmam]] and [[Mulaprakriti]]) is sexless, unconditioned and eternal. Its periodical ([[Manvantara|manvantaric]]) [[emanation]] — or primal radiation — is also One, [[androgynous]] and phenomenally finite. When the [[radiation]] radiates in its turn, all its radiations are also [[androgynous]], to become male and female [[principles]] in their lower aspects. After [[Pralaya]], whether the great or the minor [[Pralaya]] (the latter leaving the worlds in statu quo)(*), the first that re-awakes to active life is the plastic [[Akasa]], [[Father-Mother]], the Spirit and Soul of [[Ether]], or the plane on the surface of the [[Circle]]. [[Space]] is called the “[[Mother (symbol)|Mother]]” before its Cosmic activity, and [[Father-Mother]] at the first stage of re-awakening. (See Comments, [[Stanzas of Dzyan|Stanza]] II.) In the [[Kabala]] it is also Father-Mother-Son. But whereas in the Eastern doctrine, these are the [[Seventh Principle]] of the manifested Universe, or its “[[Triad#Higher Triad|Atma-Buddhi-Manas]]” ([[Spirit]], [[Soul]], Intelligence), the triad branching off and dividing into the seven cosmical and seven human [[principles]], in the Western [[Kabala]] of the [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Mysticism|mystics]] it is the [[Triad]] or [[Trinity]], and with their [[Occultism|occultists]], the [[Androgynous|male-female]] [[Jehovah]], Jah-Havah. In this lies the whole difference between the [[Esotericism|esoteric]] and the [[Christianity|Christian]] [[Trinity|trinities]]. The [[Mysticism|Mystics]] and the Philosophers, the Eastern and Western [[Pantheism|Pantheists]], synthesize their pregenetic [[triad]] in the pure divine abstraction. The orthodox, anthropomorphize it. [[Hiranyagarbha]], Hari, and Sankara — the three hypostases of the manifesting “Spirit of the Supreme Spirit” (by which title [[Bhūmi|Prithivi]] — the Earth — greets [[Vishnu]] in his first [[Avatar]]) — are the purely metaphysical abstract qualities of formation, preservation, and destruction, and are the three divine [[Avasthā|Avasthas]] (lit. hypostases) of that which “does not perish with created things” (or Achyuta, a name of [[Vishnu]]); whereas the orthodox [[Christianity|Christian]] separates his personal creative Deity into the three personages of the [[Trinity]], and admits of no higher Deity. The latter, in [[Occultism]], is the abstract Triangle; with the orthodox, the perfect Cube. The creative god or the aggregate gods are regarded by the Eastern philosopher as Bhrantidarsanatah — “false apprehension,” something “conceived of, by reason of erroneous appearances, as a material form,” and explained as arising from the illusive conception of the Egotistic personal and [[Soul#Human soul|human Soul]] (lower [[fifth principle]]). It is beautifully expressed in a new translation of Vishnu Purana. “That [[Brahman|Brahma]] in its totality has essentially the aspect of [[Prakriti]], both evolved and unevolved ([[Mulaprakriti]]), and also the aspect of [[Spirit]] and the aspect of Time. [[Spirit]], O twice born, is the leading aspect of the Supreme [[Brahman|Brahma]].(†) The next is a twofold aspect, — [[Prakriti]], both evolved and unevolved, and is the time last.” Kronos is shown in the [[Orphism|Orphic]] theogony as being also a generated god or agent.<br />
<br><br />
At this stage of the re-awakening of the Universe, the sacred symbolism represents it as a perfect [[Circle]] with the (root) point in the Centre. This sign was universal, therefore we find it in the [[Kabala]] also. The Western [[Kabala]], however, now in the hands of [[Christianity|Christian]] [[mysticism|mystics]], ignores it altogether, though it is plainly shown in the [[Zohar (book)|''Zohar'']]. These sectarians begin at the end, and show as the symbol of pregenetic Kosmos this sign , calling it “the Union of the Rose and Cross,” the great mystery of occult generation, from whence the name — [[Rosicruciansim|Rosicrucians]] (Rose Cross)!<br />
<br><br />
As may be judged, however, from the most important, as the best known of the [[Rosicruciansim|Rosicrucians]]’ symbols, there is one which has never been hitherto understood even by modern [[mysticism|mystics]]. It is that of the “Pelican” tearing open its breast to feed its seven little ones — the real creed of the Brothers of the [[Rosicruciansim|Rosie-Cross]] and a direct outcome from the Eastern Secret Doctrine. [[Brahman|Brahma]] (neuter) is called [[Kalahansa]], meaning, as explained by Western Orientalists, the Eternal Swan or goose (see [[Stanzas of Dzyan|Stanza]] III., Comment. 8), and so is [[Brahmā]], the Creator. A great mistake is thus brought under notice; it is [[Brahman|Brahma]] (neuter) who ought to be referred to as Hansa-vahana (He who uses the swan as his [[Vehicle]]) and not [[Brahmā]] the Creator, who is the real [[Kalahansa]], while [[Brahman|Brahma]] (neuter) is hamsa, and “A-hamsa,” as will be explained in the Commentary. Let it be understood that the terms [[Brahman|Brahma]] and [[Parabrahman|Parabrahmam]] are not used here because they belong to our Esoteric nomenclature, but simply because they are more familiar to the students in the West. Both are the perfect equivalents of our one, three, and seven vowelled terms, which stand for the One All, and the One “All in all.”<br />
<br><br />
Such are the basic conceptions on which the Secret Doctrine rests.</blockquote><br />
<br />
'''[Footnotes by the author]'''<br />
<br />
<blockquote>(*) It is not the physical organisms that remain in ''statu quo'', least of all their psychical principles, during the great Cosmic or even Solar [[pralayas]], but only their [[Akasha|Akasic]] or astral “photographs.” But during the minor [[pralayas]], once over-taken by the “Night,” the planets remain intact, though dead, as a huge animal, caught and embedded in the polar ice, remains the same for ages.<br />
<br><br />
(†) Thus [[Herbert Spencer|Spencer]], who, nevertheless, like Schopenhauer and von Hartmann, only reflects an aspect of the old [[esotericism|esoteric]] philosophers, and hence lands his readers on the bleak shore of Agnostic despair — reverently formulates the grand mystery; “that which persists unchanging in quantity, but ever changing in form, under these sensible appearances which the Universe presents to us, is an unknown and unknowable power, which we are obliged to recognise as without limit in Space and without beginning or end in time.” It is only daring Theology — never Science or philosophy — which seeks to gauge the Infinite and unveil the Fathomless and Unknowable.</blockquote><br />
<br />
== See also ==<br />
*[[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']]<br />
*[[Book of Dzyan]]<br />
*[[Stanzas of Dzyan]]<br />
*[[Recapitulation]]<br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://prajnaquest.fr/blog/on-the-summary-to-the-first-fundamental-proposition/ On the Summary to the First Fundamental Proposition] by Ingmar de Boer<br />
*[http://blavatskyarchives.com/sdsolitarypage1886bb.htm An Early Version of the Fundamental Propositions] at Blavatsky Study Center<br />
<br />
===Video===<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/online-programs/living-theosophy-series/2880-the-secret-doctrine-esoteric-insights-and-spiritual-practice# The Secret Doctrine: Esoteric Insights and Spiritual Practice (8 Parts)] by Pablo Sender<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Tres Proposiciones Fundamentales]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Father-Mother&diff=33617Father-Mother2017-07-27T14:48:25Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Father-Mother''' (or sometimes, Mother-Father) is a compound term used by [[H. P. Blavatsky]] in some different ways. She defines it as the "primordial Substance or Spirit-matter". In this sense, Father-Mother is related to [[svabhavat]]. In other passages "father-mother" is used to refer to the more concrete emanation [[akasha]]. In yet another sense, "father-mother" refers to the [[Logos#Second Logos|second Logos]]. Finally, there is a more generic use, in which it represents the male and female poles of the universe.<br />
<br />
== General description ==<br />
<br />
In its general application, Father and Mother are a symbol of the masculine and feminine aspects of the Cosmos, which during [[Pralaya]] are still united and, therefore, unmanifested. [[H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Father-Mother are the male and female principles in root-nature, the opposite poles that manifest in all things on every plane of Kosmos, or [[Spirit]] and [[Matter#Differentiation_of_matter|Substance]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 41.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Primordial Substance ==<br />
<br />
Mme. Blavatsky said that the "Eternal Parent" of the [[Stanzas of Dzyan|Stanzas of Dzyan]] ([[Mūlaprakṛti]])<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 3.</ref></blockquote> becomes the "seven skinned Father Mother" at the first flutter of differentiation,<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 2.</ref> when matter comes out of its [[Laya Centre#Laya condition|Laya condition]]:<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 66.</ref> <br />
<br />
<blockquote>. . . Matter had begun to differentiate, but had not yet assumed form. Father-Mother is a compound term which means primordial Substance or Spirit-matter. When from Homogeneity it begins through differentiation to fall into Heterogeneity, it becomes positive and negative; thus from the “Zero-state” (or laya) it becomes active and passive, instead of the latter alone; and, in consequence of this differentiation (the resultant of which is evolution and the subsequent Universe),—the “Son” is produced, the Son being that same Universe, or manifested Kosmos, till a new Mahapralaya.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 333.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Worlds, including our own, were of course, as germs, primarily evolved from the [[Element#The One Element|ONE Element]] in its second stage (“Father-Mother,” the differentiated World’s Soul, not what is termed the “[[Over-Soul]]” by Emerson).<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 140.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The phrase "Spirit-matter" suggests that, though there is a primordial differentiation between these two principles, they are still united.<br />
<br />
The Father-Mother contains the germs for the manifestation of all the planes in the universe, and, therefore, the seven fundamental manifestations of force, consciousness, etc. For this reason, the [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza VI|Stanzas of Dzyan]] portray it as being "seven-Skinned":<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Space is called in the esoteric symbolism “the Seven-Skinned Eternal Mother-Father.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 9.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. What, then, are the seven layers of Space, for in the “Proem” we read about the “Seven-skinned Mother-Father”?<br><br />
A. Plato and Hermes Trismegistus would have regarded this as the Divine Thought, and Aristotle would have viewed this “Mother-Father” as the “[[privation]]” of matter. It is that which will become the seven planes of being, commencing with the spiritual and passing through the psychic to the material plane. The seven planes of thought or the seven states of consciousness correspond to these planes. All these septenaries are symbolized by the seven Skins.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 304.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza VI|Stanza II.5]] of Cosmogenesis identifies Father-Mother with [[Svābhāvat]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 60.</ref></blockquote> Mme. Blavatsky also stated:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>In Esotericism it [Svabhavat] is called “Father-Mother”. It is the plastic essence of matter.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 314.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>As for Svabhavat, the Orientalists explain the term as meaning the Universal plastic matter diffused through Space, with, perhaps, half an eye to the Ether of Science. But the Occultists identify it with “father-mother” on the mystic plane.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 98.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Finally, there are some references to the Father-Mother as being the [[Ākāśa]] (the third, rather than the second stage of differentiation).<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 18.</ref><ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 400, fn.</ref><ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 75-76.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Father-Mother of the gods ==<br />
<br />
Another aspect of Father-Mother is that this principle is from where the Logoi and subsequent gods are born:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The first [Logos] is the already present yet still unmanifested potentiality in the bosom of Father-Mother.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 334.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The first line or diameter is the Mother-Father; from it proceeds the Second Logos, which contains in itself the Third Manifested Word.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 314.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>In The Secret Doctrine, that from which the manifested Logos is born is translated by the “Eternal Mother-Father”; while in the Vishnu-Purâna it is described as the Egg of the World, surrounded by seven skins, layers or zones.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 313.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
It is also said that the [[Primordial Seven]] are born from the Father-Mother, before it becomes the [[Mother (symbol)|Mother]] under the fecundation of the [[Logos#Third Logos|Third Logos]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Latent, during Pralaya, and active, during Manvantara, the “Primordial” proceed from “Father-Mother” (Spirit-Hyle, or Ilus); whereas the other manifested Quaternary and the Seven proceed from the Mother alone.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 88.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>''Question'': Is Father-Mother here synonymous with the third Logos and not with [[Svābhāvat]] in Darkness, as before, since it has now manifested and differentiated existence. . .?<br><br />
''Mme. Blavatsky'': It is synonymous now with the third Logos. And Svābhāvat is light, or manifestation. It is called both; it is perfectly interchangeable.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 313-314.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The first primordial seven are born from the third Logos. This is before it is differentiated into the mother, when it becomes pure primordial matter in its first primitive essence--father, mother potentially.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 313.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This apparent contradiction can be understood if we remember that the "Father-Mother" is related to the [[Logos#Second Logos|Second Logos]], which is regarded to be both manifested and unmanifested.<br />
<br />
== Second Logos ==<br />
<br />
Although the Father-Mother is seen as the origin of all the Logoi, we also find an identification between this and the [[Logos#Second Logos|Second Logos]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>At the time of the primordial radiation, or when the Second Logos emanates, it is Father-Mother potentially, but when the Third or manifested Logos appears, it becomes the Virgin-Mother.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 358-359.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
As shown above, the Father-Mother has been defined as "primordial Substance or Spirit-matter". In the [[Three Fundamental Propositions#First Fundamental Proposition|First Fundamental Proposition]] it is written: "Spirit-matter, Life; the “Spirit of the Universe,” the Purusha and Prakriti, or the second Logos".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 16.</ref> She also states that "the Point in the Triangle represents the Second Logos, “Father-Mother”.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 564.</ref><br />
<br />
Also, although Father-Mother is identified with [[Svābhāvat]], in [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza VI|Stanza III.10]] of Cosmogenesis the former is portrayed as an active principle building on latter, which could be interpreted as referring to the second Logos:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Father-Mother spin a web whose upper end is fastened to Spirit (''Purusha''), the light of the one Darkness, and the lower one to Matter (''Prakriti'') its (''the Spirit’s'') shadowy end; and this web is the Universe spun out of the two substances made in one, which is Swâbhâvat.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 83.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Padre–Madre]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Noumenon&diff=33616Noumenon2017-07-27T14:42:17Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Noumenon''' (νοούμενoν) is a [[Greek]] word that could be translated as "something that is thought", or "the object of an act of thought". This word is sometimes used for object or principles that cannot be known through the use of the senses.<br />
<br />
<blockquote>1. The intellectual conception of a thing as it is in itself, not as it is known through perception.<br><br />
2. The of itself unknown and unknowable rational object, or thing in itself, which is distinguished from the phenomenon through which it is apprehended by the senses, and by which it is interpreted and understood; -- so used in the philosophy of Kant and his followers. <ref>[http://www.websters-dictionary-online.org/definitions/Noumenon?cx=partner-pub-0939450753529744%3Av0qd01-tdlq&cof=FORID%3A9&ie=UTF-8&q=Noumenon&sa=Search#922# Noumenon] at Webster's Online Dictionary</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The term is generally used in contrast with, or in relation to "phenomenon", which refers to anything that appears to, or is an object of the senses.<br />
<br />
In [[Plato]]'s philosophy the noumenal realm was equated with the world of ideas known to the philosophical mind, in contrast to the phenomenal realm, which was equated with the world of sensory reality:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Platonist frames of thought draw a dividing line between two realms. One realm, the inferior of the two, is the material, physical world of sense experience. It is the "phenomenal" world, the world of objects, of the body, of immediate perception. The other, superior realm is the world of the immaterial, the spiritual, the world of realities not accessible to the body's senses, the world known by intellect or spiritual sense, the "noumenal" world.<ref>[http://www.warren-wilson.edu/~dmycoff/plato.html# Renaissance Platonism] at Warren Wilson College</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The term noumenon in the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature is generally used to refer to "The true essential nature of being as distinguished from the illusive objects of sense."<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 234.</ref> In the [[Septenary Principle|septenary model]] of the constitution of the universe, the three higher [[plane]]s are normally regarded as "noumenal".<br />
<br />
== Phenomenon ==<br />
<br />
'''Phenomenon''' (Greek: φαινόμενoν, phainomenon, from the verb φαίνειν, phainein, to show, shine, appear, to be manifest or manifest itself, plural phenomena), is any thing which manifests itself. Phenomena are often, but not always, understood as "things that appear" or "experiences" for a sentient being, or in principle may be so.<br />
<br />
The term came into its modern philosophical usage through [[Immanuel Kant]], who contrasted it with the noumenon. In contrast to a phenomenon, a noumenon is not directly accessible to observation. Kant was heavily influenced by Leibniz in this part of his philosophy, in which phenomenon and noumenon serve as interrelated technical terms.<br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Noumenon(Gk)# Noumenon] at Theosopedia<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Noúmeno]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Chronological_to_Barker_Cross-reference&diff=33458Chronological to Barker Cross-reference2017-07-24T15:18:20Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>[[Category:Research tools|Cross-reference of Chronological numbering to Barker numbering of Mahatma Letters]]This table cross-references the numbers of the Mahatma Letters to A. P. Sinnett in the chronological sequence of Vic Hao Chin, Jr. to the corresponding numbers of Barker's topical editions. <br />
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; background:Seashell; width:90%;" <br />
|-<br />
! Chronological number<br />
! Barker number<br />
! <br />
! Chronological number<br />
! Barker number<br />
!<br />
! Chronological number<br />
! Barker number<br />
!<br />
! Chronological number<br />
! Barker number<br />
!<br />
! Chronological number<br />
! Barker number<br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML1|1]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB1|1]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke"|<br />
|<b>[[ML29|29]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White" | <b>[[MLB29|29]]</b> <br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML60|60]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White" | <b>[[MLB76|76]]</b> <br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML88|88]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB10|10]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML117|117]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB93|93]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML2|2]]</b> <br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB2|2]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML30|30]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB134|134]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML61|61]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB17|17]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML89|89]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB46|46]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML118|118]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB96|96]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML3a|3a]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB3a|3a]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML31|31]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB40|40]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML62|62]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB18|18]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML90|90]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB22|22]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML119|119]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB86|86]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML3b|3b]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB3b|3b]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML32|32]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB114|114]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML63|63]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB95|95]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML91|91]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB110|110]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML120|120]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB85|85]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML3c|3c]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB3c|3c]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML33|33]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB38|38]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML64|64]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB131|131]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML92|92]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB54|54]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML121|121]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB84|84]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML4|4]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB143|143]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML34|34]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB39|39]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML65|65]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB11|11]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML93a|93a]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB23a|23a]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML122|122]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB87|87]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML5|5]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB4|4]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML35|35]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB41|41]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML66|66]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB14|14]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML93b|93b]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB23b|23b]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML123|123]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB68|68]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML6|6]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB126|126]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML36|36]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB36|36]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML67|67]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB15|15]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML94|94]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB117|117]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML124|124]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB94|94]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML7|7]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB106|106]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML37|37]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB37|37]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML68|68]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB16|16]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML95|95]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB72|72]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML125|125]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB61|61]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML8|8]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB99|99]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML38|38]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB90|90]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML69|69]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB69|69]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML96|96]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB92|92]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML126|126]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB62|62]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML9|9]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB98|98]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML39|39]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB115|115]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML70a|70a]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB20a|20a]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML97|97]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB70|70]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML127|127]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB133|133]]</b><br />
|-<br />
|<b>[[ML10|10]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB5|5]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML40|40]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB108|108]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML70b|70b]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="White"|<b>[[MLB20b|20b]]</b><br />
| bgcolor="WhiteSmoke" |<br />
|<b>[[ML98|98]]</b><br />
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|<b>[[First Letter from K.H. to A. O. Hume|Appendix I]]</b><br />
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|<b>[[Maha Chohan Letter|Appendix II]]</b><br />
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<br />
'''Appendix I''' is the [[First Letter from K.H. to A. O. Hume]]<br />
<br />
'''Appendix II''' is the [[Maha Chohan Letter]]<br />
[[es:Cronológica a Barker]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Primordial_Seven&diff=33457Primordial Seven2017-07-24T15:06:11Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>The '''Primordial Seven''' is a phrase that refers to the first seven beings to appear on any particular plane during the process of manifestation. They are variously called [[Ah-hi]] and [[Dhyani-Buddha]]s. They are also referred to as the [[Seven Rays|seven primordial rays]] from the Logos. <br />
<br />
== Primordial Seven on the different planes ==<br />
<br />
The hierarchy of the primordial seven (as any other hierarchy) emanates a lower hierarchy on every plane:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Further, each of the Primordial Seven, the first [[Seven Rays]] forming the [[Logos#Third Logos|Manifested Logos]], is again sevenfold. Thus, as the seven colors of the solar spectrum correspond to the seven Rays, or Hierarchies, so each of these latter has again its seven divisions corresponding to the same series of colors.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 567.</ref></blockquote><br />
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In doing so, the emanated hierarchy retains the same characteristics of its parent one, although the expression is necessarily more limited as they descend into matter:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Now the first, the second, third or primordial seven or Lipika, are all one. When they emanate from one plane to another, it is a repetition of—“as above, so below.” They are all differentiated in matter or density, not in qualities; the same qualities descend onto the last plane, our own, where man is endowed with the same potentiality, if he but knew how to develop it, as the highest Dhyan-Chohans.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 405.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This concept of "emanations" to lower planes is present in several systems of Western Esotericism such as [[Kabbalah]] and [[Gnosticism]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. What is the relation of the Lipika, the “Second Seven” to the “primordial Seven” end to the first “Sacred Four”?<br><br />
A. If you believe that any, save the highest Initiates, can explain this to your satisfaction, then you are greatly mistaken. The relation can be better understood, or rather, shown to be above all understanding, by first studying the Gnostic systems of the early centuries of Christianity, from that of Simon Magus down to the highest and noblest of them, the so-called PISTIS-SOPHIA. All these systems are derived from the East. That which we call the “Primordial Seven” and the “Second Seven” are called by Simon Magus the Æons, the primeval, the second and the third series of Syzygies. They are the graduated emanations, ever descending lower and lower into matter, from that primordial principle which he calls Fire, and we, Svabhavat. Behind that Fire, the manifested but silent Deity, stands with him as it does with us, that “which is, was, and ever will be.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 403.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
On the manifested planes, they were compared by Mme. Blavatsky with the lower sephiroth:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. What, then, are the stages of manifestation?<br><br />
From this manifested Logos will proceed the Seven Rays, which in the Zohar are called the lower Sephiroth and in Eastern occultism the primordial seven rays. Thence will proceed the innumerable series of Hierarchies.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 352.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Their qualities are even present on human beings, although in a latent state:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Every rational being––called Man on Earth––is of the same essence and possesses potentially all the attributes of the higher Aeôns, the primordial seven. It is for him to develop, “with the image before him of the highest,” by imitation in actu, the Potency with which the highest of his Parents, or Fathers, is endowed.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 555-556.</ref></blockquote><br />
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In Blavatsky's writings there seem to be references to two main classes of "primordial seven": The ones that appear on the first unmanifested plane, and the one that are first manifested on the third plane.<br />
<br />
== Seven Ah-hi ==<br />
<br />
When the universe is coming out of a [[maha-pralaya]] the primordial seven appear on the first manifested plane as the [[Seven Rays|seven rays]] from which every being will be emanated:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. Are the “luminous sons of manvantaric dawn” perfected human spirits of the last Manvantara, or are they on their way to humanity in this or a subsequent Manvantara?<br><br />
A. In this case, which is that of a Maha-manvantara after a Maha-pralaya, they are the latter. They are the primordial seven rays from which will emanate in their turn all the other luminous and non-luminous lives, whether Archangels, Devils, men or apes. Some have been and some will only now become human beings. It is only after the differentiation of the seven rays and after the seven forces of nature have taken them in hand and worked upon them, that they become cornerstones, or rejected pieces of clay. Everything, therefore, is in these seven rays, but it is impossible to say at this stage in which, because they are not yet differentiated and individualized.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 347.</ref></blockquote><br />
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These seven rays are called [[Ah-hi]] in [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Ah-hi are the primordial seven rays, or Logoi, emanated from the first Logos, triple, yet one in its essence. . . . The Ah-hi are the highest Dhyanis, the Logoi as just said, those who begin the downward evolution, or emanation.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 317-318.</ref></blockquote><br />
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The Ah-hi "descend" through the different planes manifesting on the third as [[Manasaputras]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. To what cosmic plane do the Ah-hi, here spoken of, belong?<br><br />
A. They belong to the first, second, and third planes—the last plane being really the starting point of the primordial manifestation—-the objective reflection of the unmanifested.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 320.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>The “Ah-hi” pass through all the planes, beginning to manifest on the third. Like all other Hierarchies, on the highest plane they are arupa, i.e., formless, bodiless, without any substance, mere breaths. On the second plane, they first approach to Rupa, or form. On the third, they become Manasaputras, those who became incarnated in men.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 321.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Seven Manasaputras ==<br />
<br />
As the seven primordial rays (Ah-hi) descend through the first and second planes, they manifest on the third as [[Manasaputras]], the "mind-born":<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The first “Primordial” are the highest Beings on the Scale of Existence. They are the Archangels of Christianity, those who refuse—as Michael did in the latter system, and as did the eldest “Mind-born sons” of Brahmâ (Veddhas)—to create or rather to multiply.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 88.</ref></blockquote><br />
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As to the origin of them, Mme. Blavatsky explains they proceed from the "[[Father-Mother]]" before spirit and matter were really separated:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The distinction between the “Primordial” and the subsequent seven Builders is this: The former are the Ray and direct emanation of the first “Sacred Four,” the Tetraktis, that is, the eternally Self-Existent One (Eternal in Essence note well, not in manifestation, and distinct from the universal ONE). Latent, during Pralaya, and active, during Manvantara, the “Primordial” proceed from “Father-Mother” (Spirit-Hyle, or Ilus); whereas the other manifested Quaternary and the Seven proceed from the [[Mother (symbol)|Mother]] alone. It is the latter who is the immaculate [[Mother_(symbol)#Virgin_mother|Virgin-Mother]], who is overshadowed, not impregnated, by the Universal MYSTERY—when she emerges from her state of Laya or undifferentiated condition. In reality, they are, of course, all one; but their aspects on the various planes of being are different.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 88.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Mme. Blavatsky was asked what she meant by "Father-Mother" in this connection:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. Is Father-Mother here synonymous with the Third Logos?<br><br />
A. The first primordial seven are born from the Third Logos. This is before it is differentiated into the Mother, when it becomes pure primordial matter in its first primitive essence, Father-Mother potentially. Mother becomes the immaculate mother only when the differentiation of spirit and matter is complete. Otherwise there would exist no such qualification. No one would speak of pure spirit as immaculate, for it cannot be otherwise. The mother is, therefore, the immaculate matter before it is differentiated under the breath of the pre-cosmic Fohat, when it becomes the “immaculate mother” of the “ Son” or the manifested Universe, in form. It is the latter which begins the hierarchy that will end with Humanity or man.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 397.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Primordial Seven and Fohat ==<br />
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In [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza V|Stanza V.1]] the primordial seven as shown as directing [[Fohat]] in the process of manifestation:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Primordial Seven, the first seven Breaths of the Dragon of Wisdom, produce in their turn from their holy circumgyrating Breaths the Fiery Whirlwind.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 106.</ref></blockquote><br />
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The next sloka ([[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza V|Stanza V.2]]) says: "They make of him the messenger of their will." HPB explained:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This shows the “Primordial Seven” using for their Vahan (vehicle, or the manifested subject which becomes the symbol of the Power directing it), Fohat, called in consequence, the “Messenger of their will”—the fiery whirlwind.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 108.</ref></blockquote><br />
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==See also==<br />
*[[Ah-hi]]<br />
*[[Seven Rays]]<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Siete Primeros]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Reincarnation&diff=33456Reincarnation2017-07-24T14:59:37Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Reincarnation''' is the theory that postulates that, after the death of the body, the consciousness that was animating a person returns to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, also in the form of an animal or plant. This doctrine is a central tenet within the majority of Indian religions such as [[Hinduism]], [[Jainism]], [[Sikhism]] and [[Buddhism]] (although the latter prefer to use the word re-birth).<br />
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In the West, the idea was also fundamental to some [[Greek philosophy|Greek philosophers]] as well as other religions, such as [[Druidism]] and in some schools of [[Judaism]] and early [[Christianity]]. <br />
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[[H. P. Blavatsky]] defined it as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>Reincarnation, or Re-birth; the once universal doctrine, which taught that the Ego is born on this earth an innumerable number of times. Now-a-days it is denied by Christians, who seem to misunderstand the teachings of their own gospels. Nevertheless, the putting on of flesh periodically and throughout long cycles by the higher human Soul (Buddhi-Manas) or Ego is taught in the Bible as it is in all other ancient scriptures, and "resurrection" means only the rebirth of the Ego in another form.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'', Glossary (Pasadena, CA: Theosophical University Press, 1972), 362-363.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== General description ==<br />
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The entity that reincarnates is the [[Ego#Higher ego|higher ego]], and not the [[Principle#Individuality and personality|personalities]]:<br />
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<blockquote>It is the personal Ego—wrongly believed by the Spiritists to be reincarnated with its personal consciousness a number of times—that appears upon this earth but once, while the Individual Spiritual monad which—like an actor who, although appearing in, and personating every night a new character, is ever the same man—is that which appears on earth throughout the cycle in various personalities.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IV (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1991), 549.</ref></blockquote><br />
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People may reincarnate in very different social and financial conditions from one life to the next according to the [[Karma]] generated:<br />
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<blockquote>The Law of Affinity acts through the inherent Karmic impulse of the [[Ego]], and govern its future existence. Comprehending Darwin's Law of Heredity for the body, it is not difficult to perceive how the birth-seeking Ego may be attracted at the time of rebirth to a body born in a family which has the same propensities as those of the reincarnating Entity.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 119 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 407-408.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>The social status of a being is, of course, a result of Karma; the law being that "like attracts like". The renascent being is drawn into the gestative current with which the preponderating attractions coming over from the last birth make him assimilate. Thus one who died a ryot [peasant] may be reborn a king, and the dead sovereign may next see the light in a coolie's tent.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 104 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Although in general terms there is a certain learning from one incarnation to the next, simply going through incarnations does not imply a growth of the [[Soul#Human soul|Soul]]. In fact, the more consciousness is attached to physical life, the faster it will reincarnate:<br />
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<blockquote>What has the number of incarnations to do with the shrewdness, cleverness, or the stupidity of an individual? A strong craving for physical life may lead an entity through a number of incarnations and yet these may not develop its higher capacities.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 119 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 407.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Time between reincarnations ==<br />
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[[H. P. Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
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<blockquote>Reincarnations in general take place after rather long periods passed in the intermediate and invisible spheres. So that if a Spiritist-Theosophist tells an Occultist-Theosophist that he is a reincarnation of Louis XV, or that Mrs. X is a reincarnation of Joan of Arc, the Occultist would answer that according to his doctrine it is impossible. It is quite possible that he might be a reincarnation of Sesostris or of Semiramis, but the time period that has passed since the death of Louis XV and even of Joan of Arc is too short according to our calculations, which are mathematically correct.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. V (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1997), 45.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Roughly calculating the number of reincarnations of a person on a planet, the [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] makes the following statement:<br />
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<blockquote>One life in each of the seven [[Root-Race|root-races]]; seven lives in each of the 49 [[Root-Race#Sub-races|sub-races]] — or 7 x 7 x 7 = 343 and add 7 more. And then a series of lives in offshoot and branchlet races; making the total incarnations of man in each station or planet 777. . . . Let us take but one million of years — suspected and now accepted by your science — to represent man’s entire term upon [[Globe#Globe D|our earth]] in this [[Round]]; and allowing an average of a century for each life, we find that whereas he [a given person] has passed in all his lives upon our planet (in this round) but 77,700 years he has been in the subjective spheres 922,300 years. Not much encouragement for the extreme modern re-incarnationists who remember their several previous existences!<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 66 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Do we choose where to reincarnate? ==<br />
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<blockquote>The reincarnating ego has in a sense very little choice in the matter, if by this we mean a deliberate selecting of one’s future family. Such a choice as we understand it is almost non-existent, because the reincarnating ego has but just left the devachan and is sunken into the relative unconsciousness of the gestation period preceding rebirth, and thus is in no condition to choose with self-conscious intent. It is karma, which throughout controls these things; and karma in the abstract is infallible in its action.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1982), 651.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Looking back at past lives ==<br />
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Renowned [[Clairvoyance|clairvoyant]], [[Charles Webster Leadbeater|C. W. Leadbeater]], wrote:<br />
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<blockquote>Some [people] promptly begin to imagine recollections and declare that in their last incarnation they were Mary Queen of Scots, Cleopatra, or Julius Caesar! Of course such extravagant claims simply bring discredit upon those who are so foolish as to make them. . . .<br />
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It is quite true that some people have had glimpses of scenes from their past lives in dreams, but naturally these are usually fragmentary and unreliable. . . . Although there are several cases on record in which some well-remembered scene has thus come through from one life to another, a considerable development of occult faculty is necessary before an investigator can definitely trace a line of incarnations, whether they be his own or another man's. . . <br />
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To follow a person from this life to the one preceding it, it is necessary first of all to trace his present life backwards to his birth and then to follow up in reverse order the stages by which the Ego descended into incarnation.<br />
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This will obviously take us back eventually to the condition of the [[Ego]] upon its own plane - the arûpa level of [[devachan]], the highest levels of the mental plane; so it will be seen that to perform this task effectually the investigator must be able to use the sense corresponding to that exalted level while awake in his physical body - in other words, his consciousness must be centred in the reincarnating Ego itself, and no longer in the lower personality. In that case, the memory of the Ego being aroused, his own past incarnations will be spread out before him like an open book.<ref>Charles Webster Leadbeater, ''Clairvoyance'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1986), 149-151.</ref></blockquote><br />
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At this point in [[evolution]] very few people are able to be aware on the mental plane while remaining in the waking state. This ability cannot be attained without a long and systematic training. Again, in C. W. Leadbeater's words:<br />
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<blockquote>The accurate reading of the [[Akashic_Records|records]], whether of one's own past lives or those of others, must not, however, be thought of as an achievement possible to anyone without careful previous training. As has been already remarked, though occasional reflections may be had upon the astral plane, the power to use the mental sense is necessary before any reliable reading can be done. Indeed, to minimise the possibility of error, that sense ought to be fully at the command of the investigator while awake in the physical body; and to acquire that faculty needs years of ceaseless labour and rigid self-discipline.<ref>Charles Webster Leadbeater, ''Clairvoyance'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1986), 148-149.</ref></blockquote><br />
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When a clairvoyant is able to be aware on this high plane, he can not only become aware of his past lives but also trace the past lives of other people. C. W. Leadbeater explained the procedure as follow:<br />
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<blockquote>He would be able, if he wished, to examine the conditions of another [[ego]] upon that level and trace him backwards through the devachanic and astral lives which led up to it, until he came to the last physical death of that Ego, and through it to his previous life.<br />
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There is no way but this in which the chain of lives can be followed through with absolute certainty; and consequently we may at once put aside as conscious or unconscious impostors those people who advertise that they are able to trace out anyone's past incarnations for so many shillings a head. Needless to say, the true occultist does not advertise, and never under any circumstances accepts money for any exhibition of his powers.<ref>Charles Webster Leadbeater, ''Clairvoyance'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1986), 151-152.</ref></blockquote><br />
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The [[Masters of Wisdom]] have the ability to see past lives of any person, though they do not seem to regard this information as too relevant for people. For example, in [[Mahatma Letter No. 93a#Page 2|one of his letters]], Mr. [[Alfred Percy Sinnett|A. P. Sinnett]] asked [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]]: "Have you the power of looking back to the former lives of persons now living, and identifying them?" To this, the Master answered: "Unfortunately, some of us have. I, for one do not like to exercise it".<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 93a (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 304.</ref> When Mr. Sinnett asked if he would tell him something about his past lives, the Master said that he may talk about it in the future, but asked:<br />
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<blockquote>Would it not be still more proper to study our own present personality before attempting to learn anything of its creator, — predecessor, and fashioner, — the man that was?<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 93a (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 304.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Reincarnation# Reincarnation] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1388# Reincarnation's White Crow: Ian Stevenson and Evidence of Past Lives] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1410# Reincarnation: the Evidence] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://hpb.narod.ru/IdeaRe-birth.htm#idea1# The Idea of Re-birth] by Francesca Arundale and an essay by Karl Heckel<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No96.pdf# Memories of Past Lives] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No113.pdf# The Necessity for Reincarnation] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/otherdocuments/Reincarnation_AnnieBesant.pdf# Reincarnation] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/IsisUnveiledAndTheTheosophistOnReincarnation.htm# ''Isis Unveiled'' and ''The Theosophist'' on Reincarnation] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatskyarchives.com/blavatskykarmareincarnation.htm# Reincarnation and Karma] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/TheoriesAboutReincarnationAndSpirits.htm# Theories about Reincarnation and Spirits] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.katinkahesselink.net/other/blavatsky-past-lives.html# Why do we not remember Our Past Lives?] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/reincarnation-of-animals.htm# Reincarnation in Animals] by W. Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/reincarnation-in-judaism-and-the-bible.htm# Reincarnation in Judaism and the Bible] by W. Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/respecting-reincarnation.htm# Respecting Reincarnation] by W. Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/transmigration-of-souls.htm# Transmigration of Souls] by W. Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/online-resources/leaflets/1802# Reincarnation] by Theosophical Society in America<br />
<br />
===Audio===<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/hodson/How%20the%20Human%20Soul%20Descends%20to%20Birth.mp3# How the Human Soul Descends to Birth] by Geoffrey Hodson<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/perkins/Reincarnation%20for%20Everyone.mp3# Reincarnation for Everyone] by James Perkins<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/perkins/Through%20Death%20to%20Rebirth.mp3# Through Death to Rebirth] by James Perkins<br />
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===Video===<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=006AA982-40CE-11D6-9AE9-003048223922# Reincarnation: The Untrue Fact] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=199882EE-A0E0-4D2B-8B2D-D72D9032119F# Has Man Lived on Earth Before?] by Geoffrey Hodson<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=676470CD-1725-4BFC-94DA-ADA2B7808959# Through Death to Rebirth] by James Perkins<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=07AC08AE-CA75-4781-9AC7-0B19555B5FB1# Reincarnation for Everyone] by James Perkins<br />
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== Additional resources ==<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/library/Bibliography/KarmaandReincarnation.pdf# Bibliography on Karma and Reincarnation] from the [[Henry S. Olcott Memorial Library]].<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical worldview]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Reencarnación]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Prak%E1%B9%9Bti&diff=33455Prakṛti2017-07-24T14:53:28Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Prakṛti''' (devanāgarī: प्रकृति) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means "nature". It is used to refer to principle of [[matter]] (not only in its physical aspect) as opposed to that of spirit ([[Puruṣa]]). Prakriti is composed of three [[gunas]], which are its tendencies or modes of operation, known as [[sattva]] (equilibrium), [[rajas]] (activity), and [[tamas]] (inertia).<br />
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In the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] view, when used in a general sense, Prakriti is the universal [[sixth principle]] upon which the [[Seventh Principle|seventh]] (the [[Puruṣa|Purusha]]) is perpetually acting and manifesting through.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1989), 262.</ref> More specifically, it is the [[cosmic matter]] that forms the lowest of the [[Plane#Macrocosmic or Solar planes|planes in the solar system]]. The [[Plane#Prakritic planes|Prakritic plane]], in its turn, has seven subdivisions, the lowest of which is our physical plane. As [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] stated, Prakriti is a lower reflection of [[Ākāśa|Akasha]]:<br />
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<blockquote>The Tibetan esoteric Buddhist doctrine teaches that Prakriti is cosmic matter, out of which all visible forms are produced; and Akâsa that same cosmic matter—but still more imponderable, its spirit, as it were, “Prakriti” being the body or substance, and Akâsa-Sakti its soul or energy.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. III (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1968), fn. 405.</ref></blockquote><br />
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==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Prakrti# Prakriti] at Theosopedia<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Prakṛti]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Pitris&diff=33454Pitris2017-07-24T14:49:55Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Pitris''' (devanāgarī: पितृ ''pitṛs'') is a [[Sanskrit]] term that means "fathers". There are two classes of Pitris in [[Hinduism]]: the human and the divine. The human pitris (manuṣyāḥ pitaraḥ) are the spirits of the departed ancestors. They are often remembered annually. The divine Pitris (devāḥ pitaraḥ) are gods of different origins, forms, grades, and abodes, regarded to be the progenitors of mankind.<br />
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[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky]] used this term in her writings to refer to the divine fashioners of humanity:<br />
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<blockquote>Pitris (Sk.). The ancestors, or creators of mankind. They are of seven classes, three of which are incorporeal, arupa, and four corporeal. In popular theology they are said to be created from Brahmâ’s side. They are variously genealogized, but in esoteric philosophy they are as given in the Secret Doctrine.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 254-255.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Divine Pitris in Hinduism ==<br />
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There are seven classes of the ''devāḥ pitaraḥ'' (divine Pitris). Three of them are ''amurtayah'' (incorporeal; composed of intellectual, not elementary substance) while the other four are ''samurtayah'' (corporeal). The names and function of the different classes of Pitris vary considerably in different texts. The commonest classification is given below:<ref>Benjamin Walker, ''The Hindu World'' vol. I, "Ancestors", (New York, Frederick A. Praeger, 1968), 40.</ref><br />
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* Incorporeal<br />
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<blockquote>1. ''Agnishvātta'' are the pitṛs of the gods.<br><br />
2. ''Barhishad'' are the pitṛs of the demons.<br><br />
3. ''Vairāja'' are the pitṛs of the great ascetics.</blockquote><br />
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* Corporeal<br />
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<blockquote>4. ''Somapa'' are the pitṛs of the brāhmins.<br><br />
5. ''Havishmat'' are the pitṛs of the kshattriyas.<br><br />
6. ''Ājyapa'' are the pitṛs of the vaiśyas.<br><br />
7. ''Sukālin'' are the pitṛs of the of the śudras.</blockquote><br />
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There is an eight category sometimes listed:<br />
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<blockquote>8. ''Vyāma'', "fumes", the pitṛs of the barbarians.</blockquote><br />
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The ''Rig Veda'' and ''Manu'' make two independent classes: those who kept up the household flame (Agni-dagdhas) and those who did not keep it up (Anagni-dagdhas). The ''Vishnu Purana'' identifies the Barishads with the fromer and the Agnishwāttas with the latter.<ref>John Dowson, ''A Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology'', "Pitris" (London, Routedge & Kegan Paul Ltd, 1968), 236.</ref><br />
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=== Mme. Blavatsky's interpretation ===<br />
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Regarding the question of the "sacred fire", [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
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<blockquote>Exoteric Hindu books mention seven classes of Pitris, and among them two distinct kinds of Progenitors or Ancestors: the Barhishad and the Agnishwatta; or those possessed of the “sacred fire” and those devoid of it. Hindu ritualism seems to connect them with sacrificial fires, and with Grihasta Brahmins in earlier incarnations: those who have, and those who have not attended as they should to their household sacred fires in their previous births. The distinction, as said, is derived from the Vedas. The first and highest class (esoterically) the Agnishwatta, are represented in the exoteric allegory as Grihasta (Brahman-householders) who, in their past births in other Manvantaras having failed to maintain their domestic fires and to offer burnt sacrifices, have lost every right to have oblations with fire presented to them. Whereas the Barhishad, being Brahmins who have kept up their household sacred fires, are thus honoured to this day. Thence the Agnishwatta are represented as devoid of, and the Barhishad as possessed of, fires.<br><br />
But esoteric philosophy explains the original qualifications as being due to the difference between the natures of the two classes: the Agnishwatta Pitris are devoid of fire (i.e., of creative passion), because too divine and pure (vide supra, Sloka 11th); whereas the Barhishad, being the lunar spirits more closely connected with Earth, became the creative Elohim of form, or the Adam of dust.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 77-78.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Pitris in Theosophy ==<br />
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According to [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] our humanity had divine ancestors:<br />
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<blockquote>“Divine origin” does not mean here a revelation from an anthropomorphic god on a mount amidst thunder and lightning; but, as we understand it, a language and a system of science imparted to the early mankind by a more advanced mankind, so much higher as to be divine in the sight of that infant humanity. By a “mankind,” in short, from other spheres; an idea which contains nothing supernatural in it.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 309.</ref></blockquote><br />
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In her writings Blavatsky called these divine ancestors "Pitris", although she declared this is not the term used in the [[Esoteric Philosophy]]:<br />
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<blockquote>The term Pitris is used by us in these Slokas to facilitate their comprehension, but it is not so used in the original Stanzas, where they have distinct appellations of their own, besides being called “Fathers” and “Progenitors.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 34, fn.</ref></blockquote><br />
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The are two classes of Pitris: the ''Lunar Pitris'' ([[Barhiṣads|Barhishads]]) which have to do with the lower principles in human beings, and the ''Solar Pitris'' ([[Agnishvatta|Agniṣvāttas]]) who endowed humanity with intellect:<br />
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<blockquote>There are seven classes of Pitris, as shown below, three incorporeal and four corporeal; and two kinds, the Agnishwatta and the Barhishad. And we may add that, as there are two kinds of Pitris, so there is a double and a triple set of Barhishad and Agnishwatta. The former, having given birth to their astral doubles, are reborn as Sons of Atri, and are the “Pitris of the Demons,” or corporeal beings, on the authority of Manu (III., 196); while the Agnishwatta are reborn as Sons of Marichi (a son of Brahmâ), and are the Pitris of the Gods (Manu again, Matsya and Padma Purânas and Kulluka in the Laws of the Manavas, III., 195).* Moreover, the Vâyu Purâna declares all the seven orders to have originally been the first gods, the Vairâjas, whom Brahmâ “with the eye of Yoga, beheld in the eternal spheres, and who are the gods of gods”; and the Matsya adds that the Gods worshipped them; while the Harivansa (S. I, 935) distinguishes the Virâjas as one class of the Pitris only—a statement corroborated in the Secret Teachings, which, however, identify the Virâjas with the elder Agnishwattas † and the Rajasas, or Abhutarajasas, who are incorporeal without even an astral phantom.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 89.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>THE Progenitors of Man, called in India “Fathers,” Pitara or Pitris, are the creators of our bodies and lower principles. They are ourselves, as the first personalities, and we are they. Primeval man would be “the bone of their bone and the flesh of their flesh,” if they had body and flesh. As stated, they were “lunar Beings.”<br />
The Endowers of man with his conscious, immortal EGO, are the “Solar Angels”—whether so regarded metaphorically or literally. The mysteries of the Conscious EGO or human Soul are great. The esoteric name of these “Solar Angels” is, literally, the “Lords” (Nath) of “persevering ceaseless devotion” (pranidhâna). Therefore they of the fifth principle (Manas) seem to be connected with, or to have originated the system of the Yogis who make of pranidhâna their fifth observance (see Yoga Shastra, II., 32.) It has already been explained why the trans-Himalayan Occultists regard them as evidently identical with those who in India are termed Kumâras, Agnishwattas, and the Barhishads.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 88.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== See also ==<br />
*[[Barhiṣads]]<br />
*[[Agnishvatta]]s<br />
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==Additional resources==<br />
<br />
* Barborka, Geoffrey A. '''''The Peopling of the Earth'''''. Wheaton, Illinois: Theosophical Publishing House, 1975. See the chapters on "The Lunar Pitris" and "The Lords of the Flame." <br />
<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Pitris# Pitris] at Theosopedia<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu mythology]]<br />
[[es:Pitṛs]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Paramartha&diff=33453Paramartha2017-07-24T14:44:30Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Paramartha''' (devanāgarī: परमार्थ ''paramārtha'') is a [[Sanskrit]] term that can be translated as "the highest or whole truth, spiritual knowledge".<ref>[http://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/mwquery/index.html# Paramārtha] at Monier Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary</ref> When used along with the word "satya" it is used to refer to the absolute truth (paramārtha-satya) as opposed to the relative or empirical one (saṃvṛti-satya).<br />
<br />
== Blavatsky on Paramartha ==<br />
<br />
In [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']], [[H. P. Blavatsky]] writes:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>“Paramârtha” is self-consciousness in Sanskrit. Svasamvedana, or the “self-analysing reflection”—from two words, parama (above everything) and artha (comprehension).<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 48, fn.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This "self-consciousness" is not the normal awareness of the self that the common person has. In another passage, Blavatsky talks of paramārtha as being "true Self-Consciousness".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 44, fn.</ref> This true self-consciousness is not associated to any sense of egotism, as can be inferred from the following definition: "Absolute Being and Consciousness which are Absolute Non-Being and Unconsciousness".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 47.</ref><br />
<br />
== Paramartha-satya ==<br />
<br />
In [[Mahāyāna Buddhism]] the term paramārtha is frequently used together with the word "satya" (truth) to mean the absolute or ultimate truth (paramārtha-satya) as opposed to the relative or empirical truth (saṃvṛti-satya). This doctrine is known as the "Two Truths". They are defined as follows:<br />
<br />
* Relative or commonsense truth (Sanskrit samvṛtisatya, Pāli sammuti sacca, Tibetan kun-rdzob bden-pa), describes our daily experience of a concrete world. This "truth" is dualistic and regarded to be based on appearances and mistaken perceptions. <br />
<br />
* Ultimate truth (Sanskrit, paramārthasatya, Pāli paramattha sacca, Tibetan: don-dam bden-pa) is non-dual, and describes the ultimate reality as [[śūnyatā]] or the emptiness of concrete and inherent characteristics of objects.<br />
<br />
=== Samvriti-satya ===<br />
<br />
Connected to the concept of ''paramārtha-satya'' is that of ''saṁvṛti-satya'', refers to the conventional, as opposed to the absolute, truth or reality. It refers to the empirical truth based on the common understanding of ordinary people, which is usually accepted in everyday life and can be admitted for practical purposes of communication.<br />
<br />
=== Mme. Blavatsky on the "Two Truths" ===<br />
<br />
Mme. Blavatsky explains this subject as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Satya mean[s] absolute true being, or Esse. In Tibetan Paramârthasatya is Dondampaidenpa. The opposite of this absolute reality, or actuality, is Samvritisatya—the relative truth only—“Samvriti” meaning “false conception” and being the origin of illusion, Maya; in Tibetan Kundzabchi-denpa, “illusion-creating appearance”.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 48, fn.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This word has been used both by the [[Yogachara]] and the [[Madhyamaka]] schools. H. P. Blavatsky says:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>There is a difference in the interpretation of the meaning of “Paramârtha” between the Yogâchâryas and the Madhyamikas, neither of whom, however, explain the real and true esoteric sense of the expression.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 44, fn.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Yogâchâryas interpret the term as that which is also dependent upon other things (paratantral); and the Madhyamikas say that Paramârtha is limited to Paranishpanna or absolute perfection; i.e., in the exposition of these “two truths” (out of four), the former believe and maintain that (on this plane, at any rate) there exists only Samvritisatya or relative truth; and the latter teach the existence of Paramârthasatya, the “absolute truth.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 48.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>This is shown by the very wording of the Sloka, which speaks of Alaya being in Paramartha—i.e., in Absolute Non-Being and Unconsciousness, being at the same time absolute perfection or Absoluteness itself. This word, however, is the bone of contention between the Yogâchârya and the Madhyamika schools of Northern Buddhism. The scholasticism of the latter makes of Paramartha (Satya) something dependent on, and, therefore, relative to other things, thereby vitiating the whole metaphysical philosophy of the word Absoluteness. The other school very rightly denies this interpretation.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 347.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
=== The "Two Truths" in Advaita Vedanta ===<br />
<br />
Advaita Vedanta, together with other spiritual traditions, makes a distinction between relative truth and absolute truth. The former referring to the relative knowledge of the normal, dualistic world and the latter to the knowledge that comes with the experience of non-duality.<ref>B. Gupta, ''Perceiving in Advaita Vedanta: Epistemological Analysis and interpretation'' (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, 1995), 15.</ref><br />
<br />
== Paramartha-tattva ==<br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Param%C4%81rtha# Paramārtha] at Theosopedia<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Buddhist concepts]]<br />
[[es:Paramārtha]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mulaprakriti&diff=33452Mulaprakriti2017-07-24T14:39:18Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Mulaprakriti''' (devanāgarī: मूलप्रकृति, ''mūlaprakṛti'') is a [[Sanskrit]] term that can be translated as "the root of nature" or "root of [[Prakriti]]"; meaning "fundamental matter". In the [[Samkhya]] school of [[Hinduism]] it is frequently used as a synonym of [[pradhāna]].<br />
<br />
== General description ==<br />
<br />
In [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature it is often defined as the essence of matter, the [[Substance#Pre-cosmic_substance|Pre-Cosmic Substance]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Precosmic root-substance (Mulaprakriti) is that aspect of the Absolute which underlies all the objective planes of Nature. Just as pre-Cosmic Ideation is the root of all individual consciousness, so pre-Cosmic Substance is the substratum of matter in the various grades of its differentiation.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 15.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
It is the "Eternal Parent wrapped in her ever invisible robes" of the [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza I|Stanza I.1]] of Cosmogenesis:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>''[Question]'': What aspect of space . . . is here called the Eternal Parent?<br><br />
''Mme. Blavatsky'': Well, it is just this androgynous something; the Svabhavat of the Buddhists. It is non-differentiated, hence--an abstraction. It is the Mulaprakriti of the Vedantins. If you preoceed to make it correspond with the human priniciples it will be Buddhi, Atman corresponding to Parabrahman.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 3.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The "invisible robes" of the Eternal Parent are the non-differentiated substance or spiritual matter,<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 3.</ref></blockquote> and they are on the highest, or seventh, plane of matter.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 6.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Other synonyms Mme. Blavatsky uses is the Vedic [[Aditi]]<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 4.</ref> or [[Pradhana]]. She often refers to [[Svābhāvat]] as a synonym, though this is probably in a general sense only, because in other occasions she talks of it as a differentiation of Mulaprakriti.<br />
<br />
As explained by our learned Vedantin Brother—T. Subba Row—Mulaprakriti, the first universal aspect of Parabrahma, its Kosmic Veil, and whose essence, to us, is unthinkable, is to the LOGOS “as material as any object is material to us”<br />
<br />
== See also ==<br />
*[[Substance]]<br />
*[[Matter]]<br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=M%C5%ABlaprak%E1%B9%9Bti# Mūlaprakṛti] at Theosopedia<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Mūlaprakṛti]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Yongs-grub&diff=33403Yongs-grub2017-07-20T15:35:06Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Yong Grub''' ([[Tibetan]]: ''yons-grub'', from ''yongs'' "wholly" and ''grub'' "accomplished or done by itself without any agent") means that which is independent and complete in itself, perfectly existent, unchanging. The concept is equivalent to that of the [[absolute]] and the [[Sanskrit]] term [[pariniṣpanna]].<br />
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[[Category:Tibetan terms]]<br />
[[Category:Buddhist concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Yong-Grub]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Buddhi&diff=33402Buddhi2017-07-20T14:28:32Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: </p>
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<div>'''Buddhi''' (devanāgarī: बुद्धि) from the root ''budh'' (to be awake; to understand; to know) is a feminine [[Sanskrit]] noun derived from the same root as the masculine form ''[[buddha]]''. In [[Hinduism]] it refers to the intellect, the faculty of discrimination. It is the aspect of the mind that knows, discriminates, judges, and decides. It is frequently regarded as the higher mind, which can determine the wiser of two courses of action if it functions clearly and if manas will accept its guidance. In [[Hinduism]] buddhi is one of the four parts that form the [[antaḥkaraṇa]] (the "inner organ") the other three being [[manas]] (the mind), [[citta]] (the memory) and [[ahamkāra]] (the ego).<br />
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In [[Theosophy]] buddhi is not the mind ([[manas]]) although it can work in close relationship with it, furnishing manas with spiritual illumination. In the [[seven principles|septenary constitution]] of human beings buddhi is the [[sixth principle]]. It is regarded to be the vehicle of [[ātman]], and in this function it is frequently called [[Soul#Spiritual soul|spiritual soul]]. <br />
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== Universal dual monad ==<br />
<br />
While [[Ātman|atman]], the [[Seventh Principle|highest principle]], is a ray of the [[Absolute]], buddhi is regarded as the first differentiation of the One and, therefore, its vehicle of expression in the manifested universe:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Âtma is said to have Buddhi for a vehicle, because Buddhi is already the first differentiation after the evolution of the universe. It is the first differentiation, and it is the Upâdhi, so to say, of Âtma.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 609.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Because it is just the first differentiation, in itself, buddhi is still beyond any quality:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Buddhi ''per se'' has nothing to do with any qualification of anything; it is simply the vehicle of Âtman, of spirit; and spirit is nothing. It cannot be said it is something. It is that which has neither beginning nor end. It is the one thing.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 639.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Buddhi, being the vehicle of expression of atman, is regarded as the [[Monad#The dual Monad|dual Monad]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The [word] Monad is from Greek, “One” the unit, whatever it is. . . . Âtma in reality is not a unit, but the one universal principle, and it is simply a ray. That which uses Buddhi as a vehicle is that ray of that universal principle. Therefore, in reality it is Buddhi which is the Monad, the one unit.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 566.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Since neither of these two principles are individual, the dual Monad is regarded as universal:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Âtma and Buddhi cannot be predicated as having anything to do with a man, except that man is immersed in them. So long as he lives he is overshadowed by these two; but it is no more the property of that than of anything else.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 644.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Universal consciousness ==<br />
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Buddhi is the first principle of sentiency in the universe, although still in a very universal plane: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>Buddhi is nothing, per se, but simply the first differentiation. And it is the consciousness in the universal consciousness, but it is non-consciousness in this world. On this plane of finite consciousness it is nothing, for it is infinite consciousness.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 610.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In this connection, buddhi is regarded as "the Spiritual Soul, the vehicle of pure universal spirit". Because the spiritual soul does not show the quality of individual consciousness, it is frequently regarded as ''irrational'', except when acting in conjuction with [[manas]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>As a pure emanation of the Universal mind it can have no individual reason of its own on this plane of matter, but like the Moon, who borrows her light from the Sun and her life from the Earth, so Buddhi, receiving its light of Wisdom from Atma, gets its rational qualities from Manas. Per se, as something homogeneous, it is devoid of attributes".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'' (London: Theosophical Publishing House, [1987]), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In [[Mahatma Letter No. 85b#Page 24|one of his letters]], [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] stated that the "remorse of conscience" proceeds "always from the 6th principle".<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 85B (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 264.</ref> However, we must keep in mind that in the letters the sixth principle frequently refers to buddhi-manas.<br />
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== Spiritual Ego ==<br />
<br />
In order to be manifested or "activated" on the lower planes Buddhi has to be united to the [[Manas|manasic]] principle:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The supreme energy resides in the <u>Buddhi</u>; latent — when wedded to <u>[[Ātman|Atman]]</u> alone, active and irresistible when galvanized by the essence of "Manas" and when none of the dross of the latter commingles with that pure essence to weigh it down by its finite nature.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 111 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 375.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
When united to [[manas]], buddhi or the Universal Soul is generally called the [[Ego#Spiritual ego|Spiritual Ego]]. [[H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Spiritual divine Ego is the Spiritual soul or Buddhi, in close union with Manas, the mind-principle, without which it is no EGO at all, but only the Atmic Vehicle.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'' (London: Theosophical Publishing House, [1987]), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Spiritual intuition ==<br />
<br />
When the nature of buddhi expresses through manas there is a phenomena of direct perception, beyond rational thinking, which is sometimes called spiritual intuition:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Spiritual ego reflects no varying states of consciousness; is independent of all sensation (experience); it does not think—it KNOWS, by an intuitive process only faintly conceivable by the average man.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VIII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1990), 96.</ref></blockquote><br />
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In some of [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]]'s writings there are some references to this principle forming a body:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>In the normal or natural state, the sensations are transmitted from the lowest physical to the highest spiritual body, i.e., from the first to the 6th principle (the 7th being no organized or conditioned body, but an infinite, hence unconditioned principle or state).<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IV (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1991), 101.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Buddhi# Buddhi] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1374# The Intuition: Knowledge by Fusion] by Shirley Nicholson<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Buddhi]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Up%C4%81dhi&diff=33359Upādhi2017-07-18T15:32:34Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Upādhi''' (devanāgarī: उपाधि) is a [[Sanskrit]] word used in [[Hinduism]]. It consists of ''upa'' and ''dha''. ''Upa'' means "in the sense of" an ''dha'' means "to place". Hence upādhi means "that which places its own attributes to something that is nearby".<ref>[http://www.avgsatsang.org/hhsvs/pdf/Definitions_of_Vedantic_Terms.pdf# Definitions of Some Vedāntic Terms] by Swami Viditatmananda Saraswati.</ref> Thus the upādhi is a vehicle of expression for a true reality, both limiting and defining its expression. [[H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote it as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>'''Upâdhi''' (Sk.). Basis; the vehicle, carrier or bearer of something less material than itself: as the human body is the upâdhi of its spirit, ether the upâdhi of light, etc., etc.; a mould; a defining or limiting substance.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 353.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Up%C4%81dhi# Upādhi] at Theosopedia<br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Vehículo]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Triad&diff=33150Triad2017-07-08T15:00:15Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Triad''' is a word to refer to a group of three elements. In philosophy and religion, triads, triangles, and trinities are prominent. [[H. P. Blavatsky]] said: "Everywhere antiquity slows an unbounded reverence for the Triad and Triangle--the first geometrical figure."<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 333.</ref><br />
<br />
In the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] view there are different triads, which are a reflection on different [[plane]]s and levels of the absolute Triad. In [[Mahatma Letter No. 90#Page 11|one of his letters]], [[Koot Hoomi| Mahatma K.H.]] talks about a primeval triad or trinity formed by the [[Absolute]], [[Spirit]], and [[Matter]]. He compares it with the [[Christianity|Christian]] Trinity as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This trinity resolving itself into unity, — a doctrine as old as the world of thought — was seized upon by some early Christians, who had it in the schools of Alexandria, and made up into the Father, or generative spirit; the Son or matter, — man; and into the Holy Ghost, the immaterial essence, or the apex of the equilateral triangle, an idea found to this day in the pyramids of Egypt.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 90 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Absolute triad ==<br />
<br />
In the [[Three Fundamental Propositions#First Fundamental Proposition|First Fundamental Proposition]] of the [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']], [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] stated that, although the [[Absolute]] or [[Be-ness]] "is beyond the range and reach of thought" and "devoid of all attributes", it can be symbolized as having two aspects:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This “Be-ness” is symbolised in the Secret Doctrine under two aspects. On the one hand, absolute abstract Space, representing bare subjectivity, the one thing which no human mind can either exclude from any conception, or conceive of by itself. On the other, absolute Abstract Motion representing Unconditioned Consciousness.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 14.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Thus, [[Be-ness]], [[Space#Absolute abstract space|Absolute abstract space]], and [[Motion#Absolute abstract motion|Absolute abstract motion]] (also known as the [[Great Breath]]) form the "metaphysical triad . . . the Root from which proceeds all manifestation".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 15.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Pre-Cosmic triad ==<br />
<br />
[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] states that at the beginning of the process of [[manvantara|manifestation]] the absolute triad [[Radiation|radiates]] the two basic pre-cosmic principles, which become the cause of the new Cosmos:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Considering this metaphysical triad as the Root from which proceeds all manifestation, the great Breath assumes the character of precosmic Ideation. It is the ''fons et origo'' of force and of all individual consciousness, and supplies the guiding intelligence in the vast scheme of cosmic Evolution. On the other hand, precosmic root-substance (Mulaprakriti) is that aspect of the Absolute which underlies all the objective planes of Nature.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 15.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In his description of this process, [[T. Subba Row]] adds a third principle, thus forming a pre-cosmic triad:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Parabrahmam radiates from the Logos, and manifests itself as the light and energy of the Logos. Now we see the first manifestation of Parabrahmam is a Trinity, the highest Trinity that we are capable of understanding. It consists of Mulaprakriti, Eswara or the Logos, and the conscious energy of the Logos, which is its power and light; and here we have the three principles upon which the whole cosmos seems to be based.<ref>Tallapragada Subba Row, ''Notes on the Bhagavad Gita'', (Pasadena, CA: Theosophical University Press, 1978), 21-22.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
[[Mulaprakriti]] (the precosmic root-substance) is a radiation of the [[Space#Absolute abstract space|Absolute abstract space]], the unmanifested [[Logos]] (or Pre-cosmic Ideation) is a radiation of the [[Great Breath]], while the "light of the Logos" (called [[Daiviprakriti]]) is [[Parabrahman]] (the [[Be-ness]]) radiating through the Logos.<br />
<br />
This is "the highest trinity that we are capable of understanding" since the [[absolute]] triad "transcends the power of human conception and . . . is beyond the range and reach of thought"<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 14.</ref>).<br />
<br />
== Cosmic triad ==<br />
<br />
The cosmic triad is regarded as the basis for the trinities of different religions, often represented in an anthropomorphic way.<br />
<br />
In the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature the cosmic (or manifested) triad consists of [[Cosmic Ideation]], [[Cosmic Substance]] and Cosmic Energy (or [[Fohat]]), which are manifestations of the pre-cosmic Ideation, the [[Substance#Pre-cosmic_substance|pre-cosmic Substance]], and the "light of the Logos" (or [[Daiviprakriti]]), respectively.<br />
<br />
== Human triad ==<br />
<br />
The human Triad (sometimes called "higher triad" or "upper triad") is formed by the three higher [[principles]], [[Atma]], [[Buddhi]] and [[Manas]], the fruition of the latter assimilated by the first two after every terrestrial life.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 237.</ref> In other occasions, [[H. P. Blavatsky]] says that the triad corresponds to "Âtmâ-Buddhi and the “Envelope” which reflects their light, the three in one", the "envelope" referring to the [[auric egg]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 338.</ref> This is the perennial [[individuality]] that [[reincarnation|reincarnates]] in different [[personality|personalities]].<br />
<br />
== Other triads ==<br />
<br />
=== Of physical nature ===<br />
<br />
<blockquote>[[Matter]], [[force]], and [[motion]] are the trinity of physical objective nature, as the trinitarian unity of spirit-matter is that of the spiritual or subjective nature.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 90 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 283.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Triad# Triad] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://theosophytrust.org/tlodocs/articlesSymbol.php?d=TriangleThe_0380.html&p=180# The Triangle] at the Theosophy Trust website<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Tríada]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Tetraktys&diff=33149Tetraktys2017-07-08T14:53:40Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[File:Tetraktys.png|180px|right|thumb|The Pythagorean Tetraktys]]<br />
'''Tetraktys''' (τετρακτύς) is a [[Greek]] word meaning "tetrad". It refers to a triangular figure consisting of ten points arranged in four levels with one, two, three, and four points in each row. This was an important mystical symbol used by the [[Pythagoreanism|Pythagoreans]].<br />
<br />
== The Pythagorean Tetraktys ==<br />
<br />
== In Theosophy ==<br />
<br />
[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] said of the Tetraktys:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>In occult and Pythagorean geometry the Tetrad is said to combine within itself all the materials from which Kosmos is produced. The Point or One, extends to a Line—the Two; a Line to a Superficies, Three; and the Superficies, Triad or Triangle, is converted into a Solid, the Tetrad or Four, by the point being placed over it. Kabalistically Kether, or Sephira, the Point, emanates Chochmah and Binah, which two, are the synonym of Mahat, in the Hindu Purânas, and this Triad, descending into matter, produces the Tetragrammaton, Tetraktys, as also the lower Tetrad.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 355.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Pythagorean general formula of unity in multiplicity, the ONE evolving the many, and pervading the many and the whole. Their mystic DECAD 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 = 10 expresses the entire idea; it is not only far from being “revolting” but it is positively sublime. The ONE is the Deity, the Two matter (the figure so despised by them as matter per se can never be a conscious unity), the THREE (or Triangle) combining Monad and Duad, partaking of the nature of both, becomes the triad or the phenomenal world. The Tetrad or sacred TETRAKTYS, the form of perfection with the Pythagoreans, expresses at the same time the emptiness of all—MAYA; while the DECAD, or sum of all, involves the entire cosmos.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. III (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1995), 355.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Accoding to [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme Blavatsky]] the Tetraktys as a symbol can be interpreted on several levels. In its highest application, it stands for the [[Logos#First Logos|Unmanifested Logos]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The true Pythagorean Tetraktys was the Tetraktys of the invisible Monad, which produces the first Point, the second and the third and then retires into the darkness and everlasting silence; in other words the Tetraktys is the first Logos. Taken from the plane of matter, it is among other things, the lower Quarternary, the man of flesh or matter.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 357.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
When considering the higher aspect of the manifested cosmos, Mme. Blavatsky inteprets the Tetraktys as formed of the three elements of the Logos plus the primordial matter:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This latter differentiation [of matter] will only appear when it [the Ray] falls into matter, when the Triangle becomes a Square, the first Tetraktys.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 352.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Mme. Blavatsky maintained that the tetraktis alone (that is, four elements) cannot account for the whole manifested cosmos. Within it there are two tetraktys, one representing the higher aspect and another one for the lower planes of the universe. In her view, exoteric religions usually talk about the lower Tetraktys, involving the world of forms:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>“The Pythagorean world,” Plutarch tells us (in De anim. procr., 1027) “consisted of a double quaternary.” This statement corroborates what is said about the choice, by the exoteric theologies, of the lower Tetraktis. For:—“The quaternary of the intellectual world (the world of Mahat) is T’Agathon, Nous, Psyche, Hyle; while that of the sensible world (of matter), which is properly what Pythagoras meant by the word Kosmos—is Fire, Air, Water, and Earth. The four elements are called by the name of rizomata, the roots or principles of all mixed bodies,” i.e., the lower Tetraktis is the root of illusion of the world of matter; and this is the tetragrammaton of the Jews, and the “mysterious deity,” over which the modern Kabalists make such a fuss!<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 599.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Tetraktys by which the Pythagoreans swore, was not the Tetragrammaton, but on the contrary, the higher or superior Tetraktys.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 357.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== In Kabbalah ==<br />
[[File:Tetraktys Tetragrammaton.png|100px|right]]<br />
There is an arrangement of the letters of the [[Tetragrammaton]] (the four lettered name of God in Hebrew scripture יהוה or YHWH), where they are inscribed on the ten positions of the tetraktys, from right to left.<br />
<br />
In this regard, Mme. Blavatsky said:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Tetrad is esteemed in the Kabala, as it was by Pythagoras, the most perfect, or rather sacred number, because it emanated from the one, the first manifested Unit, or rather the three in one. Yet the latter has been ever impersonal, sexless, incomprehensible, though within the possibility of the higher mental perceptions.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 599.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://prajnaquest.fr/blog/the-sacred-four-and-the-emanation-of-the-primordial-seven/ The Sacred Four and the Emanation of the Primordial Seven] by Ingmar de Boer<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Greek terms]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:kabbalistic concepts]]<br />
[[es:Tetraktys]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Puru%E1%B9%A3a&diff=33069Puruṣa2017-07-06T20:50:24Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Puruṣa''' (devanāgarī: पुरुष) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means "man" or "Cosmic man". In the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] school [[Samkhya]] Purusha is pure consciousness. It is thought to be our true identity as opposed to [[Prakriti]], or the material realm. In Vedic schools Purusha is seen as the "Self" that pervades the universe. The Vedic divinities are interpretations of the many facets of Purusha.<br />
<br />
[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] uses this term in a similar way:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The seventh principle . . . is called [[Ātman|Atma]] when spoken of in connection with an individual and Purush when applied in its relation to the Universe.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1989), 261.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Puruṣa]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Praj%C4%81pati&diff=33068Prajāpati2017-07-06T20:28:21Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Prajāpati''' (Devanāgarī: प्रजापति) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means "lord of creatures", a creator or progenitor. In [[Hinduism]] he is the deity presiding over procreation, and protector of life. The term is variously applied to [[Brahmā]], [[Hiraṇyagarbha]], [[Manu#Root and Seed Manus|Manu Svāyambhuva]], Vishvakarman, and other deities.<br />
<br />
The name is also commonly applied to the mind-born sons ([[mānasaputra]]s) of Brahmā, from whom mankind has descended. There are mentions to 7, 10, 14, or 21 Prajapatis in different sacred texts.<br />
<br />
== In Hinduism ==<br />
<br />
When regarded as the ten sages, they are Marichi, Atri, Angiras, and Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, Vasishtha, Prachetas or Daksha, Bhrigu, and Narada.<ref>John Dowson, ''A Classical Dictionary of Hindu Mythology'', (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1968), 239</ref> According to some authorities the Prajapatis are only seven in number, being identical with the seven great Rishis, which have been described as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Wise men, created from the brain of Brahma. They are listed as Atri, Bharadwaja, Gotama, Jamad-agni, Kashyapa, Vashishtha and Vishwamitra. Vishnu, in his sixth avatar as Parasurama, delivered the world into their hands and they now appear in the sky as the seven stars of the Plough constellation. Another list gives Agastya, Angiras, Atri, Bhrigu, Kashyapa, Vashishtha and Vishvamitra while another lists Angiras, Brighu, Daksha, Kashyapa, Narada, Vashishtha and Vishvamitra.<ref>[http://www.mythologydictionary.com/seven-rishis-the-mythology.html# Seven Rishis] at Mythology Dictionary</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Theosophical view ==<br />
<br />
[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] comments on the Hindu teachings about Prajapati as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Thus, in the Rig Veda, wherein [[Brahmā|Brahmâ]] is not even named, Cosmogony is preluded with the [[Hiraṇyagarbha|Hiranyagharba]], "[[Egg#Mundane_egg|the Golden Egg]]", and Prajâpati (Brahmâ later on), from whom emanate all the hierarchies of "Creators".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 426.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Brahmâ-Prajâpati, once he became separated from, yet identical with Vâch, caused the seven Rishis, the seven [[Manu]]s or Prajâpatis to issue from that crown. In Exotericism one will always find 10 and 7, of either Sephiroth or Prajâpati; in Esoteric rendering always 3 and 7, which yield also 10.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 433.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Sometimes she talked about two classes of Prajāpatis, relating them to the Solar and Lunar [[Pitṛs|Pitris]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>In the esoteric teaching, they [the Kumaras] are the progenitors of the true spiritual SELF in the physical man—the higher Prajâpati, while the Pitris, or lower Prajâpati, are no more than the fathers of the model, or type of his physical form, made “in their image.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 457.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza IV|Stanza IV.3]] of [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']] we read:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>From the effulgency of light — the ray of the ever-darkness — sprung in space the re-awakened energies; the one from the egg, the six, and the five.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 89.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Mme. Blavatsky explains that these numbers represent the Prajapatis:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>"The One from the Egg, the Six and the Five", give the number 1065, the value of the first-born (later on the male and female Brahmâ-Prajâpati), who answers to the numbers 7, and 14, and 21 respectively. The Prajapati are, like the Sephiroth, only seven, including the synthetic Sephira of the triad from which they spring. Thus from Hiranyagarbha or Prajâpati, the triune (primeval Vedic Trimurti, Agni, Vayu, and Surya), emanate the other seven, or again ten, if we separate the first three which exist in one, and one in three, all, moreover, being comprehended within that one “supreme” Parama, called Guhya or “secret,” and Sarvâtma, the “Super-Soul.” “The seven Lords of Being lie concealed in Sarvâtma like thoughts in one brain.” So are the Sephiroth. It is either seven when counting from the upper Triad headed by Kether, or ten—exoterically. In the Mahabhârata the Prajâpati are 21 in number, or ten, six, and five (1065), thrice seven.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 89-90.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== See also ==<br />
*[[Manasaputra]]<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu mythology]]<br />
[[es:Prajāpati]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Occultism&diff=33067Occultism2017-07-06T20:07:16Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[File:Occultism.jpg|right|200px]]<br />
'''''Occultism''''' is a word that derives from the [[Latin]] ''occultus'' meaning "hidden", "secret", or not easily perceived, and refers to the study of a deeper psychic and spiritual reality that extends beyond the world of senses and thought. Writing when the word had not acquired today's mixed connotations, H. P. Blavatsky defined true occultism as "altruism", the Great Renunciation of self, which is embedded in the principle that Divinity is concealed--transcendent yet immanent--within every living being.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 254.</ref><br />
<br />
== General description ==<br />
[[File:Reginald Machell The Path.jpg|thumb|"Path of the Spiritual Warrior" by [[Reginald Machell]].]]<br />
In the common parlance, the word occultism is associated with [[Siddhi|psychic powers]] and [[phenomena]], as well as with esoteric practices such as [[magic]], [[astrology]], palmistry, etc. However, the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature uses this term in a different way. Most frequently, it refers to a path of spiritual development based on the [[Esoteric Philosophy]]. This path, according to [[T. Subba Row]], is one of the two available to humanity in its [[evolution]]ary journey:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This philosophy recognises two paths, both having the same end, a glorified [[immortality]].<br><br />
The one is the steady natural path of progress through moral effort, and practise of the virtues. . . . It is the normal method followed by the vast mass of humanity. . . . The other road is the precipitous path of occultism, through a series of [[initiation]]s. Only a few specially organised and peculiar natures are fit for this path.<ref>Tallapragada Subba Row, ''Esoteric Writings'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 112-113.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The path of occultism can be seen as an "accelerated" road that the disciple or [[chela]] traverses, guided and assisted by a [[Masters of Wisdom|Master of Wisdom]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Occult progress, growth along this path, is effected by the adept directing through the chela various occult forces, which enable him to obtain prematurely, so to speak, a knowledge of his spiritual nature: and to obtain powers to which he is not morally entitled by degree of his progress. Under these circumstances it may happen that the chela loses his moral balance, and falls into the [[dugpa]] path.<ref>Tallapragada Subba Row, ''Esoteric Writings'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 113.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In spite of the intrinsic dangers in this path, it is a necessity in nature because those who succeed become part of the [[Brotherhood of Adepts]] that guides the evolution of humanity.<br />
<br />
The occult path involves a physical, psychological, and spiritual discipline, as well as the learning of the occult side of nature. The treading of this path ultimately leads to transcending the personal identity and realizing the essential unity of humanity, and, indeed, of all existence:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>True Occultism is the destruction of the false idea of [[Self]], and therefore true spiritual perfection and knowledge are nothing else but the complete identification of our finite “selves” with the Great All. It follows, therefore, that no spiritual progress at all is possible except by and through the bulk of Humanity. It is only when the whole of Humanity has attained [[happiness]] that the individual can hope to become permanently happy—for the individual is an inseparable part of the Whole.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 105.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
[[Annie Besant]] went on to say:<br />
<blockquote>What is occultism? The word is used and misused in the most extraordinary ways. H.P. Blavatsky once defined it as the study of mind in nature, meaning by the word mind, in that connection, the study of the Universal Mind, the Divine Mind, the study of the workings of God in the Universe, the study therefore of all the energies which, coming forth from the spiritual centre, work themselves out in the worlds around us. It is the study of the life side of the Universe, the side from which everything proceeds and from which everything is moulded, the looking through the illusory form to the reality which animates it; it is the study which underlies all phenomena; it is the ceasing to be wholly blinded by these appearances in which we so continually move and by which we are so continually deluded; it is the piercing through the veil of maya and perceiving the reality, the one Self, the one Life, the one Force, that which is in everything and all things in it. So that, really, occultism, in the true sense of the word, may be said to be identical with that vision which, as you know, is spoken of in the Bhagavad-Gita, where Shri Krishna declares that "He who sees Me," that is, who sees the One Self, "in everything and everything in Me, verily he seeth".<ref>Annie Besant, ''Occultism, Semi-Occultism, and Pseudo-Occultism'' Adyar Pamphlet No. 19 (Adyar, Madras : Theosophical Publishing House, 1920), 4-5.</ref></blockquote> <br />
<br />
The occult path also stimulates the development of [[Siddhi|latent powers]] that can be used for good or bad purposes. Therefore, Mme. Blavatsky sometimes used the term "occultism" in a neutral way, adding the adjectives "white" and "black" to qualify the altruistic and selfish application of the occult knowledge, respectively:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Occultism is colorless, and only when used by man for the one side or the other is it good or bad. Bad Occultism, or that which is used for selfish ends, is not false, for it is the same as that which is for good ends. Nature is two-sided, negative and positive, good and bad, light and dark, hot and cold, spirit and matter. . . . Occultism is the general, all-inclusive term, the differentiating terms are White and Black; the same forces are used by both, and similar laws, for there are no special laws in this universe for any special set of workers in Nature’s secrets.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 400-F.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In her writings, Mme. Blavatsky also differentiated between theoretical and practical occultism, "or what is generally known as [[Theosophy]] . . . and [[Occult science]]".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 156.</ref> The study of the Theosophical teachings is regarded as part of the preparation to tread the occult path. The real truths of Occultism, however, are not to be perceived merely by a mental process but by entering into a spiritual state of [[consciousness]]. As [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] wrote to [[Alfred Percy Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]]: "he who will not find our truths in his [[soul]] and within himself — has poor chances of success in Occultism".<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 126 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 425.</ref><br />
<br />
== Occult arts ==<br />
[[File:Stars.jpg|right|200px]]<br />
The following quote by [[Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke]] provides the definition of the term occultism that is most common in modern times:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>OCCULTISM has its basis in a religious way of thinking, the roots of which stretch back into antiquity and which may be described as the Western esoteric tradition. Its principal ingredients have been identified as [[Gnosticism]], the [[Hermeticism|Hermetic]] treatises on [[Alchemy|alchemy]] and [[Magic|magic]], [[Neoplatonism|Neo-Platonism]], and the [[Kabbalah]], all originating in the eastern Mediterranean area during the first few centuries AD.<ref>Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke, ''The Occult Roots of Nazism'', New York: NYU Press, 1985.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] made a distinction between the path of occultism and the production of [[phenomena]] or the general use of [[Siddhi|psychic powers]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Occultism is not magic, though magic is one of its tools.<br><br />
Occultism is not the acquirement of powers, whether psychic or intellectual, though both are its servants.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VIII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1990), 14.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
She frequently used the term "occult arts" to refer to such disciplines as "alchemy, astrology, occult physiology, chiromancy", etc., and regarded them as branches of the "occult sciences". They are. . .<br />
<br />
<blockquote>. . . arts based on the knowledge of the ultimate essence of all things in the [[Kingdoms of Life|Kingdoms of Nature]]--such as minerals, plants and animals--hence of things pertaining to the realm of material nature, however invisible that essence may be, and howsoever much it has hitherto eluded the grasp of Science. . .<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 252.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The occult arts, although dealing with "invisible essences", still operate in the material realm. They are regarded as no more than tools by the occult philosophy (identified in the next quote with the [[Sanskrit]] term ''[[ātma-vidyā]]''):<br />
<br />
<blockquote>All the others [the occult arts] may be mastered and results obtained, whether good, bad or indifferent; but Atma-Vidya sets small value on them. It includes them all and may even use them occasionally, but it does so after purifying them of their dross, for beneficent purposes, and taking care to deprive them of every element of selfish motive. Let us explain: Any man or woman can set himself or herself to study one or all of the above specified "Occult Arts" without any great previous preparation, and even without adopting any too restraining mode of life. One could even dispense with any lofty standard of morality. In the last case, of course, ten to one the student would blossom into a very decent kind of sorcerer, and tumble down headlong into [[Black Magic|black magic]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 252-253.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Dangers of Occultism ==<br />
[[File:Magic Circle - J. W. Waterhouse.JPG|thumb|"Magic Circle" by J. W. Waterhouse]]<br />
In [[Mahatma Letter No. 126#Page 4|one of his letters]], [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] described the occult path to [[Alfred Percy Sinnett|Mr. Sinnett]] as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>You were told, however, that the path to [[Science#Occult Science|Occult Sciences]] has to be trodden laboriously and crossed at the danger of life; that every new step in it leading to the final goal, is surrounded by pit-falls and cruel thorns; that the pilgrim who ventures upon it is made first to confront and conquer the thousand and one furies who keep watch over its adamantine gates and entrance — furies called Doubt, Skepticism, Scorn, Ridicule, Envy and finally Temptation — especially the latter; and that he, who would see beyond had to first destroy this living wall; that he must be possessed of a heart and soul clad in steel, and of an iron, never failing determination and yet be meek and gentle, humble and have shut out from his heart every human passion, that leads to evil.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 126 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 422.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The occult training eventually awakens [[Siddhi|psychic and spiritual powers]] that are latent in human beings. Although they are not the primary aim of the occult path, once developed they can be used by the occultist for different purposes. Their possession necessarily entails a responsibility and a potential danger of misuse. Thus the manipulation of these forces requires purity of intention if the practitioner is not to fall into [[Magic#Black magic|black magic]]. In [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]]'s words:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Occultism is not magic. It is comparatively easy to learn the trick of spells and the methods of using the subtler, but still material, forces of physical nature; the powers of the [[Soul#Animal soul|animal soul]] in man are soon awakened; the forces which his love, his hate, his passion, can call into operation, are readily developed. But this is Black Magic—Sorcery. For it is the motive, and the motive alone, which makes any exercise of power become black, malignant, or white, beneficent [[Magic]]. It is impossible to employ spiritual forces if there is the slightest tinge of selfishness remaining in the operator. For, unless the intention is entirely unalloyed, the spiritual will transform itself into the psychic, act on the [[Astral Plane|astral plane]], and dire results may be produced by it. The powers and forces of animal nature can equally be used by the selfish and revengeful, as by the unselfish and the all-forgiving; the powers and forces of spirit lend themselves only to the perfectly pure in heart—and this is DIVINE MAGIC.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 156-157.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
[[T. Subba Row]] wrote about this in a similar way:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This [occult] path is eminently dangerous to those who do not hold the talisman which ensures safety; this talisman is a perfectly unselfish, self-forgetting, self-annihilating devotion to the religious good of mankind, a self-abnegation, which is not temporal, but must have no end for ever, and the object of which is the religious enlightenment of the human race. Without this talisman, though the progress of the chela may be very rapid for a time, a point will come when his upward advance will be arrested when real moral worth will tell; and the man who progressed along the slow and steady path may be first to merge himself in the light of the logos.<ref>Tallapragada Subba Row, ''Esoteric Writings'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 113-114.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Based on these facts, theosophical occultists advised aspirants to apply their energies towards the purification of their natures before seeking to become occultists. In [[Annie Besant]]'s words:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>No man whose life is not pure, whose thoughts are not noble, whose character is not unselfish, should venture to touch occultism at all; for every fault he has will assail him, every failing will dig pits for his feet; and until he has laid his foundation of virtue he must not try to build on it the Temple of Occultism. Nor must he try to build that Temple until his emotions and senses are thoroughly under his control.<ref>[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/2566# Occultism and Occult Training] by Annie Besant</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
For this reason, [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] wrote to a member of the [[Theosophical Society]] "sigh not for [[chelaship]]; pursue not that, the dangers and hardships of which are unknown to you".<ref>Curuppumullage Jinarājadāsa, ''Letters from the Masters of the Wisdom'' First Series No. 9 (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), ???.</ref> In the same vein, T. Subba Row wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>It is therefore wiser not to seek the path of chelaship; if the man is fit for it, his [[Karma]] will lead him to it imperceptibly and infallibly; for the path of occultism seeks the [[chela]] and will not fail to find him, when the fit man presents himself.<ref>Tallapragada Subba Row, ''Esoteric Writings'', (Adyar, Madras: The Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 114.</ref></blockquote><br />
Thus, when a person is spiritually mature to tread this path, he will be contacted on the inner planes by one of the [[Masters of Wisdom]] and put under [[probation]].<br />
<br />
Due to the power of the forces and processes put in action, the path of occultism requires a full commitment and a life consistent with the occult laws. Master K.H. wrote that "Occultism is not to be trifled with. It demands all or nothing".<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 59 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 155. See [[Mahatma Letter No. 59#Page 2|Mahatma Letter No. 59, Page 2]].</ref> Mme. Blavatsky wrote in similar terms:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>As a rule, Occultism is a dangerous, double-edged weapon for one to handle, who is unprepared to devote his whole life to it.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. I (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1966), 101.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Occultism is a jealous mistress, and, once launched on that path, it is necessary to resolutely refuse to recognize any attempt to draw one back from it.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 10.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== The need for secrecy ==<br />
<br />
Due to the danger associated with the use of [[Siddhi|psychic powers]], the [[Masters of Wisdom]] do not openly divulge their methods of development. Instead, they set up a system of [[Chelaship|discipleship]] where only those who have proved themselves morally fit to use them in the right way are taught about this. [[Koot Hoomi|Mahatma K.H.]] answered a student who complained about not having any "special powers" to do the spiritual work as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>I shall waste no condolences upon the poor "[[Chela#Lay_chelas|lay-chelas]]" because of the "delicate weapons they can alone work with." A sorry day it would be for mankind if any sharper or deadlier ones were put in their unaccustomed hands! Ah! you would concur with me, my faithful friend, if you could but see the plaint one of them has just made on account of the agonizing results of the poisoned weapons he got the wielding of, in an evil hour, through the help of a [[Black Magic|sorcerer]]. Crushed morally, by his own selfish impetuosity; rotting physically from diseases engendered by the animal gratifications he snatched with "demon" help; behind him a black memory of wasted chances and hellish successes; before him a pall of dark despair, — of <u>[[Avichi|avitchi]]</u> . . . Be satisfied, friend, with your "delicate weapons"; if not as lethal as the discus of [[Viṣṇu|Vishnu]], they can break down many barriers if plied with power. . . . I have only given you a glimpse into the hell of this lost soul, to show you what disaster may come upon the "lay-chela" who snatches at forbidden [[Siddhi|power]] before his moral nature is developed to the point of fitness for its exercise.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 111 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 373-374.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Some occult teachings may not be about methods of psychic development but are potentially dangerous because they teach how to manipulate hidden forces of nature. As Mahatma K.H. wrote to [[Allan Octavian Hume|A. O. Hume]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>These figures as I have already said are so interwoven with the profoundest psychological mysteries that to divulge the key to such figures, would be to put the rod of power within the reach of all the clever men who would read your book.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 66 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 174.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Similarly, [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] stated in connection with the [[elementals]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>If the constitution, field of action, and method of action of elementals were given out, there are some minds of a very inquiring and peculiar bent who soon could find out how to come into communication with these extraordinary beings, with results disadvantageous to the community as well as the individuals. . . .<br><br />
It is wise to increase the knowledge of nature's laws, but always with proper limitations. All things will become known some day. Nothing can be kept back when men have reached the point where they can understand. But at this time it would not be wise to give them, for the asking, certain knowledge that would not be good for them.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 112-113.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== See also ==<br />
*[[Spiritual Path]]<br />
*[[Chelaship]]<br />
*[[Initiation]]<br />
*[[Masters of Wisdom]]<br />
*[[Chela]]<br />
*[[Magic]]<br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Occultism# Occultism] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/2755# The Conditions of Occult Research] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No97.pdf# Occultism] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/2566# Occultism and Occult Training] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/history/besant/essays-and-addresses-vol-III/besant.9.html# Occultism, Semi-Occultism and Pseudo-Occultism] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/LodgesOfMagic.htm# Lodges of Magic] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/OccultismOrMagic.htm# Occultism or Magic] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/OccultismVersusTheOccultArts.htm# Occultism Versus The Occult Arts] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/PracticalOccultism.htm# Practical Occultism] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/SearchAfterOccultism.htm# The Search after Occultism] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/WhatIsOccultism.htm# What is Occultism?] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1251# The Dangers of Occultism] by Franz Hartmann<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/considerations-on-magic.htm# Considerations on Magic] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/conversations-occultism-hpb.htm# Conversations on Occultism with H.P.B.] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/occult-arts-propositions.htm# Occult Arts - Some Propositions by H. P. Blavatsky] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/occult-teachings.htm# Occult Teachings] by William Q. Judge/H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/occult-vibrations.htm# Occult Vibrations] by William Q. Judge/H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/occultism-for-barter.htm# Occultism For Barter] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/occultism-what-is-it.htm# Occultism - What is it?] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/rules-in-occultism.htm# Rules in Occultism] by William Q. Judge/H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.katinkahesselink.net/other/shearman6.html# Why occultists contradict one another] by Hugh Shearman<br />
*[http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/hpb-sio/sio-hp.htm# Studies in Occultism] A collection of articles by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
<br />
===Audio===<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/brooks/The%20Ethics%20of%20Occultism.mp3# The Ethics of Occultism] by Richard Brooks<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Ocultismo]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Nid%C4%81na&diff=33035Nidāna2017-07-06T17:37:50Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Nidāna''' (devanāgarī: निदान) is a [[Sanskrit]] and [[Pali]] word that means "cause, foundation, source or origin." In [[Buddhism]] the term is associated to the concept of dependent origination (pratītyasamutpāda) that explains the existence of objects and phenomena as being due to a chain of 12 causes/effects called "nidānas."<br />
<br />
== The Twelve Nidanas ==<br />
<br />
The concatenation of twelve nidanas as described in [[Buddhism]] is as follows:<br />
<br />
1- From spiritual ignorance (avidyā) arises mental formations (saṃskāra).<br />
<br />
2- From mental formations arises consciousness (vijñāna).<br />
<br />
3- From consciousness arises name and form (nāmarūpa).<br />
<br />
4- From name and form arise the sense organs and their objects (ṣaḍāyatana).<br />
<br />
5- From sense organs and their objects arise contact (sparśa).<br />
<br />
6- From contact arises sensation (vedanā).<br />
<br />
7- From sensation arises craving (tṛṣṇā).<br />
<br />
8- From craving arises clinging (upādāna).<br />
<br />
9- From clinging arises becoming (bhava).<br />
<br />
10- From becoming arises birth (jāti).<br />
<br />
11 & 12- From birth arise aging and dying (jarāmaraṇa).<br />
<br />
== Theosophical view ==<br />
<br />
In [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza I|stanza I]], sloka 4 of [[The Secret Doctrine (book)|''The Secret Doctrine'']] the nidanas are called "the great causes of misery".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 38.</ref> Mme. Blavatsky defined them as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The twelve Nidanas or causes of being. Each is the effect of its antecedent cause, and a cause, in its turn, to its successor; the sum total of the Nidanas being based on the four truths, a doctrine especially characteristic of the Hînayâna System. They belong to the theory of the stream of catenated law which produces merit and demerit, and finally brings [[Karma]] into full sway. It is based upon the great truth that [[reincarnation|re-incarnation]] is to be dreaded, as existence in this world only entails upon man [[suffering]], misery and pain; [[Death]] itself being unable to deliver man from it, since death is merely the door through which he passes to another life on earth after a little rest on its threshold—[[Devachan]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 39.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. Are Nidâna and Maya (the great causes of misery) aspects of the Absolute?<br><br />
A. Nidâna means the concatenation of cause and effect; the twelve Nidânas are the enumeration of the chief causes which produce the severest reaction or effects under the Karmic law. Although there is no connection between the terms Nidâna and Maya in themselves, Maya being simply illusion, yet if we consider the universe as Maya or illusion, then certainly the Nidânas, as being moral agents in the universe, are included in Maya. It is Maya, illusion or ignorance, which awakens Nidânas; and the cause or causes having been produced, the effects follow according to Karmic law. To take an instance: we all regard ourselves as Units, although essentially we are one indivisible Unit, drops in the ocean of Being, not to be distinguished from other drops. Having then produced this cause, the whole discord of life follows immediately as an effect; in reality it is the endeavour of nature to restore harmony and maintain equilibrium. It is this sense of separateness which is the root of all evil.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 326-327.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Pāli terms]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Buddhist concepts]]<br />
[[es:Nidāna]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Law_of_Cycles&diff=33034Law of Cycles2017-07-05T23:26:23Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''The Law of Cycles''' postulates a model of the universe where processes, events, or phenomena repeat themselves in a recurring way at fixed periods of time. [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The ancients divided time into endless cycles, wheels within wheels, all such periods being of various durations, and each marking the beginning or the end of some event either cosmic, mundane, physical or metaphysical. There were cycles of only a few years, and cycles of immense duration.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 91.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== General description==<br />
<br />
In her ''[[The Secret Doctrine (book)|Secret Doctrine]]'', [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] establishes [[Three Fundamental Propositions]], of which the second one makes reference to the law of cycles. She wrote: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Eternity of the Universe in toto as a boundless plane; periodically “the playground of numberless Universes incessantly manifesting and disappearing,” called “the manifesting stars,” and the “sparks of Eternity.” “The Eternity of the Pilgrim”† is like a wink of the Eye of Self-Existence (Book of Dzyan.) “The appearance and disappearance of Worlds is like a regular tidal ebb of flux and reflux.” (See Part II., “Days and Nights of Brahma.”)<br />
This second assertion of the Secret Doctrine is the absolute universality of that law of periodicity, of flux and reflux, ebb and flow, which physical science has observed and recorded in all departments of nature. An alternation such as that of Day and Night, Life and Death, Sleeping and Waking, is a fact so common, so perfectly universal and without exception, that it is easy to comprehend that in it we see one of the absolutely fundamental laws of the universe.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Adyar, India: Theosophical Publishing House, 1978), 16-17.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Cycles take place at all levels--cosmic, planetary, racial, national, etc.: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>Even exoteric philosophy explains that these perpetual circles of time are ever returning on themselves, periodically, and intelligently in Space and Eternity. There are “Cycles of matter” and there are “Cycles of Spiritual evolution.” Racial, national, and individual cycles.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 637-638.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>There are cycles of 7, 11, 21, 77, 107, 700, 11,000, 21,000 [years] etc.; so many cycles will make a major and so on.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 48 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 164.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>The [terrestrial] periods which bring around ever-recurring events, begin from the infinitesimally small—say of ten years—rotation and reach to cycles which require 250, 500 700, and 1000 years, to effect their revolution around themselves, and within one another. All are contained within the Mahâ-Yuga, the “Great Age”, which itself revolves between two eternities—the “Pralayas” or Nights of Brahmâ.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. II (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1954), 420.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The larger cycles affect the whole universe, which undergoes a recurring process of creation and dissolution that in Hindu thought are called [[manvantara]] and [[pralaya]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>As the sun arises every morning on our objective horizon out of its (to us) subjective and antipodal space, so does the Universe emerge periodically on the plane of objectivity, issuing from that of subjectivity—the antipodes of the former. This is the "Cycle of Life." And as the sun disappears from our horizon, so does the Universe disappear at regular periods, when the "Universal night" sets in. The Hindoos call such alternations the "Days and Nights of Brahma," or the time of Manvantara and that of Pralaya (dissolution). The Westerns may call them Universal Days and Nights if they prefer.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Key to Theosophy'', (London: Theosophical Publishing House, 1987), 84.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
However, there are bigger and smaller manvantaras and pralayas, the former affecting the whole universe and the latter the [[Planetary Chain]].<br />
<br />
== Planetary cycles ==<br />
<br />
The planet Earth is part of a chain of seven globes (known as "[[Planetary Chain]]") along which an [[evolution]]ary cycle takes place. This general cycle is composed of seven sub-cycles known as [[Round]]s. In its turn, each Round is composed of seven different cycles known as "[[Globe]]s"<br />
<br />
Between each "Round" or even "Globe" the life impulse goes into a [[pralaya]] that lasts as long as that particular period of activity did. At the end of this, the life impulse re-awakens and a new cycle begins.<br />
<br />
In short, the evolutionary cycle of a Planetary Chain involves seven Rounds, each Round involving a cycle of evolution on seven Globes.<br />
<br />
==Racial and national cycles==<br />
<br />
<blockquote>As every sub-race and nation have their cycles and stages of developmental evolution repeated on a smaller scale, it must be the more so in the case of a Root-Race. Our race then has, as a Root-race, crossed the equatorial line and is cycling onward on the Spiritual side; but some of our sub-races still find themselves on the shadowy descending arc of their respective national cycles; while others again—the oldest—having crossed their crucial point, which alone decides whether a race, a nation, or a tribe will live or perish, are at the apex of spiritual development as sub-races.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 301.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Thus we see in history a regular alternation of ebb and flow in the tide of human progress. The great kingdoms and empires of the world, after reaching the culmination of their greatness, descend again, in accordance with the same law by which they ascended; till, having reached the lowest point, humanity reasserts itself and mounts up once more, the height of its attainment being, by this law of ascending progression by cycles, somewhat higher than the point from which it had before descended. They are called in the Eastern esotericism the Karmic cycles.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 641-642.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This law of cycles affords the [[Adept]] the opportunity to predict events such as the shift of continents when a new [[Root-Race]] makes its appearance on [[Globe#Globe D|Earth]]. As [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] wrote: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>Everything comes in its appointed time and place in the [[evolution]] of [[Rounds]], otherwise it would be impossible for the best [[Clairvoyance|seer]] to calculate the exact hour and year when such cataclysms great and small have to occur. All an [[adept]] could do would be to predict an approximate time; whereas now events that result in great geological changes may be predicted with as mathematical a certainty as eclipses and other revolutions in space.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 93b (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 312.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Yugas ==<br />
<br />
[[Hinduism|Hindu]] philosophy mentions four ages or "yugas" of varying duration repeating themselves in a cyclic way. They are called Satya or Krita Yuga (1,728,000 years), Treta Yuga (1,296,000 years), Dvapara Yuga (864,000 years), and Kali Yuga (432,000 years).<br />
<br />
See also: [[Yuga]].<br />
<br />
==Centennial cycle==<br />
<br />
==Yearly cycle==<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Let no one imagine that it is a mere fancy, the attaching of importance to the birth of the year. The earth passes through its definite phases and man with it; and as a day can be coloured so can a year. The astral life of the earth is young and strong between Christmas and Easter. Those who form their wishes now will have added strength to fulfil them consistently.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. IX (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 5.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Current cycle ==<br />
<br />
According to the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] teachings our Planetary Chain is in the middle of its [[Round#Fourth_Round|fourth Round]], on [[Globe#Globe_D|Globe D]]. Humanity is currently in its [[Root-Race#Fifth_Root-Race|fifth Root-Race]], which has developed [[Root-Race#Sub-races|five subraces]] so far. This means have just passed the middle of the [[Septenary Principle|seven-fold]] evolutionary journey. Besides, we are right now in what is known as the [[Yuga#Kali_Yuga|Kali Yuga]] or dark age.<br />
<br />
In [[Mahatma_Letter_No._112#Page 3|one of his letters]] to [[Alfred Percy Sinnett|A. P. Sinnett]], [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] talks about "the selfish baseness of human nature", which, he adds, is "the concomitant, always, of the passage of humanity through our stage of the evolutionary circuit".<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 112 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 382.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== See also ==<br />
*[[Evolution]]<br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1362# Wild Bells] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1241# The Golden Age, Aquarius, and the Ringed Planet] by Carlos Cardoso Aveline<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/1888.htm# 1888] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/OnTheNewYearsMorrow.htm# 1890! On the New Year's Morrow] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/OurCycleAndTheNext.htm# Our Cycle and the Next] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/TheoryOfCycles.htm# The Theory of Cycles] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/TidalWave.htm# The Tidal Wave] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/YearIsDeadLongLiveTheYear.htm# The Year is Dead, Long Live the Year!] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/cycles-and-cyclic-law.htm# Cycles and Cyclic Law] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/cyclic-impression-return-our-evolution.htm# Cyclic Impression and Return and Our Evolution] by William Q. Judge<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Law of Cycles]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Atman&diff=33031Atman2017-07-05T21:01:58Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Atman''' (devanāgarī: आत्मन् ātman) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means "self". In [[Hinduism|Hindu philosophy]], especially in the [[Vedānta]] school, it refers to one's ''true'' self beyond phenomena.<br />
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In the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature, it refers to the [[Seventh Principle|seventh principle]] in man and the cosmos. Atman is said to be a ray of the [[Absolute]] and, therefore, not individual. Each person participates of this universal principle, which manifests in him or her as the "Higher Self". However, ''per se'', atman is beyond consciousness or any other relative attribute. Its vehicle of expression in the differentiated universe is the sixth principle, or [[Buddhi]]. <br />
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== Universal principle ==<br />
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Ātman, the [[Seventh Principle|seventh principle]], is frequently described by [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] as being a ray of the [[Absolute]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The seventh [principle is] the synthesis of the six, and not a principle but a ray of the Absolute ALL—in strict truth.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 232, fn.</ref></blockquote><br />
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This being the case atman is, essentially, beyond any description:<br />
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<blockquote>Ātma is nothing; it is all absolute, and it cannot be said that it is this, that or the other. . . It is simply that in which we are.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 609.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Since atman is omnipresent, it cannot be regarded as a human principle, but rather as a universal one:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Spirit (in the sense of the Absolute, and therefore, indivisible ALL), or Atma. As this can neither be located nor limited in philosophy, being simply that which IS in Eternity, and which cannot be absent from even the tiniest geometrical or mathematical point of the universe of matter or substance, it ought not to be called, in truth, a “human” principle at all.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'', (London: Theosophical Publishing House, 1987), 119.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>The seventh [Principle] is not a human, but a universal principle in which Man participates; but so does equally every physical and subjective atom, and also every blade of grass and everything that lives or is in Space, whether it is sensible of it or not.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 630.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>We say that the Spirit (the "Father in secret" of Jesus), or Atman, is no individual property of any man, but is the Divine essence which has no body, no form, which is imponderable, invisible and indivisible, that which does not exist and yet is, as the Buddhists say of Nirvana. It only overshadows the mortal; that which enters into him and pervades the whole body being only its omnipresent rays, or light, radiated through [[Buddhi]], its vehicle and direct emanation.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'' (London: Theosophical Publishing House, [1987]), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== The Higher Self ==<br />
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When referring to the presence of atman in human beings, it is said to constitute the "higher self":<br />
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<blockquote>The Higher Self is Atma the inseparable ray of the Universal and ONE SELF. It is the God above, more than within, us.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'' (London: Theosophical Publishing House, [1987]), 175.</ref></blockquote><br />
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However, this does not mean that each person has his or her own higher self. In reality, there is only One self expressing through every person:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Atma, the "Higher Self," is neither your Spirit nor mine, but like sunlight shines on all. It is the universally diffused "divine principle," and is inseparable from its one and absolute Meta-Spirit, as the sunbeam is inseparable from sunlight.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Key to Theosophy'', (London: Theosophical Publishing House, 1987), 135. </ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>You must never say: “my Âtma”; you have no Âtma. This idea is the curse of the world. It has produced this tremendous selfishness, this egotism we say, “we are”, “my Âtma”, “my Buddhi”.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 646.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Conscious non-consciousness ==<br />
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Being a universal and absolute principle, ātman cannot be said to have [[consciousness]] as we know it, which is a relative attribute:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Consciousness implies limitations and qualifications; something [the object] to be conscious of, and someone [the subject] to be conscious of it. But Absolute Consciousness contains the cognizer, the thing cognized and the cognition, all three in itself and all three one.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 56.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>Understand me, Ātman cannot be called infinite consciousness. It is the one Absolute, which is conscious non-consciousness. It contains everything, the potentiality of all; therefore, it is nothing at all. . . . It is “No Thing,” you understand?<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 609-10.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>He [man] starts downward as a simply spiritual entity—an unconscious seventh principle . . . with the germs of the other six principles lying latent and dormant in him.<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 44 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 118.</ref></blockquote><br />
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However, it should not be thought that atman is just a lack of consciousness. Its state is not what we know as consciousness and, to indicate this fact, it is said to be unconscious or non-conscious:<br />
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<blockquote>It must not be forgotten, also, that we give names to things according to the appearances they assume for ourselves. We call absolute consciousness “unconsciousness,” because it seems to us that it must necessarily be so.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 56.</ref></blockquote><br />
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==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=%C4%80tman# "Ātman"] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1367# "The Becoming Self"] by Joy Mills<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Ātman]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Vi%E1%B9%A3%E1%B9%87u&diff=32956Viṣṇu2017-07-04T20:59:46Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Viṣṇu''' ([[Sanskrit]] विष्णु) is the second deity in the [[Hinduism|Hindu]] [[Trimurti]] who governs the aspect of preservation and sustenance of the universe, so he is called "Preserver of the universe".<br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu mythology]]<br />
[[es:Vishṇu]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Ved%C4%81nta&diff=32955Vedānta2017-07-04T20:55:17Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>{{Template:Article needs expansion}}<br />
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'''Vedānta''' (devanāgarī: वेदान्त) is a [[Sanskrit]] term originally used in [[Hinduism|Hindu philosophy]] as a synonym for the texts known as the [[Upanishads (book)|Upanishads]], found in the last part of the [[Vedas (book)|Vedas]]. The meaning comes from Veda-anta = "Veda-end" meaning "the appendix to the Vedic hymns", although it is also speculated that it means "the purpose or goal [end] of the Vedas".<br />
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By the 8th century, the word came to be used to describe a group of philosophical traditions concerned with the realization of the ultimate nature of reality ([[Brahman]]). There are several schools of Vedanta (also known as Uttara-Mīmāṃsā), the most popular being the Advaita Vedānta.<br />
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== Advaita Vedanta ==<br />
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The [[Sanskrit]] term ''advaita'' literally means not-two. It refers to the idea that the true Self, Atman, is the same as the highest Reality, Brahman. It gives "a unifying interpretation of the whole body of Upanishads",[2] providing scriptural authority for the postulation of the nonduality of Atman and Brahman. Followers seek liberation/release by acquiring vidyā (knowledge)[3] of the identity of Atman and Brahman. It emphasizes Jivanmukta, the idea that moksha (freedom, liberation) is achievable in this life.<br />
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== Vishishtadvaita Vedanta ==<br />
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Viśiṣṭādvaita Vedānta (Sanskrit: विशिष्टाद्वैत), is a sub-school of the Vedanta VishishtAdvaita (literally "Advaita with uniqueness; qualifications"). First expounded by Sri Sampradaya, with Ramanuja as its most prominent proponent, its philosophy can be described as qualified monism in which Brahman alone exists, but is characterized by multiplicity. This school of Vedanta philosophy believes in all diversity subsuming to an underlying unity.<br />
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[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Religions]]<br />
[[es:Vedanta]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Darkness&diff=32954Darkness2017-07-04T18:05:54Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Darkness''', in the Theosophical literature, is a term applied in different ways. It generally refers to the [[Absolute]], to the universe in [[pralaya]] or to pre-cosmic principles, before the manifestation of the cosmos.<br />
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<blockquote>According to the tenets of Eastern Occultism, DARKNESS is the one true actuality, the basis and the root of light, without which the latter could never manifest itself, nor even exist. Light is matter, and DARKNESS pure Spirit. Darkness, in its radical, metaphysical basis, is subjective and absolute light; while the latter in all its seeming effulgence and glory, is merely a mass of shadows, as it can never be eternal, and is simply an illusion, or Maya.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 70.</ref></blockquote> <br />
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== Meaning of the term == <br />
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In the context of universal principles, the word "darkness" is used to refer to those principles that are beyond our comprehension, so that they appear as darkness to our minds:<br />
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<blockquote>[The] source is unknown, though as strongly demanded by reason and logic, therefore it is called “Darkness” by us, from an intellectual point of view.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 40.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>It is Darkness most unquestionably to our intellect, inasmuch as we can know nothing of it. I told you already that neither Darkness nor Light are to be used in the sense of opposites, as in the differentiated world.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 337.</ref></blockquote><br />
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At the level of these universal principles we are not talking about light or its absence. Therefore this "darkness" is not the opposite of light:<br />
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<blockquote>In the sense of objectivity, both light and darkness are illusions—maya; in this case, it is not Darkness as absence of Light, but as one incomprehensible primordial Principle, which, being Absoluteness itself, has for our intellectual perceptions neither form, colour, substantiality, nor anything that could be expressed by words.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 331.</ref></blockquote><br />
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The term darkness is sometimes used in a relative way:<br />
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<blockquote>In using figurative language, as has been done in The Secret Doctrine, analogies and comparisons are very frequent. Darkness for instance, as a rule, applies only to the unknown totality, or Absoluteness. Contrasted with eternal darkness, the first Logos is certainly Light; contrasted with the second or third, the manifested Logos, the first is Darkness, and the others are Light.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 368.</ref></blockquote><br />
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In the same way it can be said that what is darkness to the regular mind, may not necessarily be so to the [[mysticism|mystic]] or the [[Adept]]: <br />
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<blockquote>[It] is absolute darkness to the scientific mind, and but a gray twilight to the perception of the average mystic, though to that of the spiritual eye of the Initiate it is absolute light.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 41.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== The Absolute ==<br />
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The ultimate darkness is the [[absolute reality]], which cannot be perceived even by the [[Logos]]: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>Q. What is Ever-Darkness in the sense used here?<br><br />
A. Ever-Darkness means, I suppose, the ever-unknowable mystery, behind the veil—in fact, Parabrahm. Even the Logos can see only Mulaprakriti, it cannot see that which is beyond the veil. It is that which is the “Ever-unknowable Darkness.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 351.</ref></blockquote><br />
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The Absolute being the source of everything, in the Theosophical Literature it is said that darkness is the source of light:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>If the absolute deity can be referred to as Darkness or the Dark Fire, the light, its first progeny, is truly the first self-conscious god.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 375.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>For the Occultist, the Rosecroix of the Middle Ages, and even the mediaeval Kabalists, said that to our human perception and even to that of the highest “angels,” the universal Deity is darkness, and from this Darkness issues the Logos. . .<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 376.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>But esoterically, it is Darkness itself, the unknowable Absolute which is the Source, firstly of the radiation called the First Logos, then of its reflection, the Dawn, or the Second Logos, and finally of Brahmâ, the manifested Light, or the Third Logos.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 376.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Thus, the Darkness is regarded as eternal, while the appearance of light (or manifestation) is a non-eternal phenomena occurring periodically.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 351.</ref><br />
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== Pralaya ==<br />
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<blockquote>Darkness is taken as the appropriate allegorical representation of the condition of the Universe during Pralaya, or the term of absolute rest, or non-being, as it appears to our finite minds.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 69.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>When the whole universe was plunged in sleep—had returned to its one primordial element—there was neither centre of luminosity, nor eye to perceive light, and darkness necessarily filled the boundless all.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 41.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Pre-cosmic Principles ==<br />
<br />
In some occasions the term "darkness" is applied to the pre-cosmic principles, especially when they are mentioned in reference to the manifested elements. The [[Logos#First Logos|first or unmanifested Logos]] is called in [[Stanzas of Dzyan#Stanza III|Stanza III.8 "the dark hidden father" as opposed to the manifested "white brilliant son".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 77.</ref> Darkness is also used to refer to the the first cosmic element, "the waters" or "[[chaos]]", before it differentiated into the different [[planes]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 366.</ref><br />
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== In Christian thought ==<br />
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In [[Christianity]] the term darkness is usually applied to [[Satan]], "The Prince of Darkness." However, Satan is also related to [[Lucifer]], which means "the light bearer".<br />
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[[H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>Even in the mind-baffling and science-harassing Genesis, light is created out of darkness “and darkness was upon the face of the deep” (ch. i. v. 2.)—and not vice versâ. “In him (in darkness) was life; and the life was the light of men” (John i. 4). A day may come when the eyes of men will be opened; and then they may comprehend better than they do now, that verse in the Gospel of John that says “And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehendeth it not.” They will see then that the word “darkness” does not apply to man’s spiritual eyesight, but indeed to “Darkness,” the absolute, that comprehendeth not (cannot cognize) transient light, however transcendent to human eyes.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 70.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>Demon est Deus inversus. The devil is now called Darkness by the Church, whereas, in the Bible he is called the “Son of God” (see Job), the bright star of the early morning, Lucifer (see Isaiah). There is a whole philosophy of dogmatic craft in the reason why the first Archangel, who sprang from the depths of Chaos, was called Lux (Lucifer), the “Luminous Son of the Morning,” or manvantaric Dawn. He was transformed by the Church into Lucifer or Satan, because he is higher and older than Jehovah, and had to he sacrificed to the new dogma.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 70-71.</ref></blockquote><br />
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=== Mediaeval mysticism ===<br />
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In authors such as [[Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite]] or texts like ''The Cloud of Unknowing'' the word darkness was used to refer to the highest and unknowable aspect of the Godhead.<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
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<references/><br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Darkness# Darkness] at Theosopedia<br />
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[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Christian concepts]]<br />
[[es:Tinieblas]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Theosophy&diff=32953Theosophy2017-07-04T17:58:41Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>:''For the Theosophical journal see [[Theosophy (periodical)]]''<br />
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'''Theosophy''' derives from the Greek term θεοσοφία (theosophia), from θεός (theos), "god", "gods" or "divine", and σοφία (sophia), [[wisdom]]; variously translated as divine wisdom, the wisdom of God or the gods, or wisdom in things divine.<br />
The term is first found in writings of [[Porphyry]] (AD 234–c. 305), a well-known Alexandrian philosopher who belonged to the [[Neoplatonism|Neo-Platonic]] school.<ref>Santucci, James A. ''On Theosophia And Related Terms'' (Theosophical History, vol. II, no. 3, 1987), 107-110</ref><br />
In the course of time, several people and movements spiritually inclined also adopted the denomination of "theosophers" or "theosophists" for themselves. That was the case of Meister Eckhart in the 14th century, a group of Renaissance philosophers such as [[Paracelsus]] in the 16th century, Robert Fludd, Thomas Vaughan, and [[Jacob Boehme]] in the 17th; and [[Emanuel Swedenborg]] and Karl von Eckartshausen in the 18 th century, among others. Finally, the theosophical movement reappeared in the 19th century with the founding of the [[Theosophical Society]] in 1875 by [[H. P. Blavatsky]], [[H. S. Olcott]], [[W. Q. Judge]], and others.<br />
<br />
[[H. P. Blavatsky]], states that "''theosophia'' properly means not a knowledge of "God" but of gods, ''i.e.'', ''divine'', that is superhuman knowledge".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 335.</ref> In [[The Theosophical Glossary (book)|''The Theosophical Glossary'']], she describes the term further as follows:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Theosophia (Gr.). Wisdom-religion, or "Divine Wisdom". The substratum and basis of all the world-religions and philosophies, taught and practised by a few elect ever since man became a thinking being. In its practical bearing, Theosophy is purely divine ethics; the definitions in dictionaries are pure nonsense, based on religious prejudice and ignorance of the true spirit of the early Rosicrucians and mediæval philosophers who called themselves Theosophists.<ref>Blavatsky, H. P., ''Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1918), 304.</ref></blockquote><br />
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==Neo-Platonic theosophy==<br />
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The origin of the term theosophia is unknown, but it is likely to have been coined by the [[Neoplatonism|Neo-Platonic]] (a philosophical school founded by [[Ammonius Saccas]], who was born ca. 175). Based on the writings of the famous Platonist [[Alexander Wilder|Prof. Alexander Wilder]], [[H. P. Blavatsky]] suggests that the term was commonly used by all Neo-Platonists.<ref>Blavatsky, H. P., ''The Key to Theosophy'' (London: Theosophical Publishing House, [1968], 1-2)</ref> However, researches made in the late 1980s by scholars James Santucci<ref>Santucci, James A. ''On Theosophia And Related Terms'' (Theosophical History, vol. II, no. 3, 1987), 107-110</ref> and Dr. Jean-Louis Siémons<ref>Jean-Louis Siémons, ''Theosophia in Neo-Platonic and Christian Literature'', (London: Theosophical History Centre, 1988)</ref> showed that it is only with the third-generation Neo-Platonist Porphyry (234–305) that we find the term in writing for the first time. In Porphyry’s view, the [[Wisdom#Divine wisdom|divine wisdom]] is a state of illumination that can be attained by self-exertion. The theosophos (Gr. θεόσοφος) tries "by himself, to elevate himself, alone to alone, to a communion with the divine." With Iamblichus (250–325), the pure mystical meaning given to the term by Porphyry acquires a more occult or magical significance. He proposed that the theosophia can be attained through theurgy (Gr. θεουργία), a series of religious rituals and magic operations aimed at elevating consciousness. Proclus (412–485) uses the term in yet another way to denominate specific spiritual doctrines, making reference to a local 'Hellenic theosophy', but also to a foreign or barbarian (that is, non-Greek) theosophy, referring to Chaldean doctrines.<br />
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==Christian theosophy==<br />
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Many early Christians, including a number of Church Fathers, were students of Neo-Platonic teachers. They also adopted the term theosophia, but used it in a more Christian sense to mean "the [[Wisdom]] of God". Clement of Alexandria (150–215) talks about a theosophos as one who writes "driven by divine inspiration," and thus in time this term came to be used to refer to the prophets of old. An important difference between the Neo-Platonic and Christian concepts of theosophia, is that in the former view no one is a born theosophos—he becomes such by long exertion, application to philosophy, self-purification and contemplation of the divine.<ref>Siémons, op. cit., p. 24</ref> In the Christian view the divine wisdom is bestowed by God—as He chooses—upon the prophet, in the form of a revelation. After the Neo-Platonists disappeared in the 6th century, the term theosophia continued to be used in Christianity during the Middle Ages, but frequently in a lower sense as a synonym of theologia. In the 9th century, after the re-discovery of the works of Pseudo-Dionysius (a Christian Neo-Platonist that lived ca. 500) the term regained a lofty meaning among great mystics such as Meister Eckhart, J. Tauler, John of Ruysbroeck, and others. It was through their writings that 17th to 19th century European mystics such as Boehme, Saint-Martin, Swedenborg, and others, inherited the term theosophy and adopted it as their own. With these “theosophers” (as they came to be known) the term became popular, being on the title of a number of books during the 1700s.<ref>Faivre, Antoine, ''Theosophy, Imagination, Tradition'' (Albany, State University of New York Press, 2000), 19</ref> There continued to be publications on Christian theosophy until the middle of the 19th century.<br />
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==Modern Theosophy==<br />
<br />
At the opening of the last quarter of the 19th century a committee formed by [[H. P. Blavatsky]], [[H. S. Olcott]], [[W. Q. Judge]], and others, founded what they called the [[Theosophical Society]]. According to Col. Olcott, the choice of the name of the newly formed Society was subject of discussion in the committee, and several options were suggested, such as the Egyptological, the Hermetic, the Rosicrucian, etc. However, none of them seemed the right one. 'At last,' he recalls 'in turning over the leaves of the Dictionary, one of us came across the word "Theosophy," whereupon, after discussion, we unanimously agreed that that was the best of all.' Olcott explained this name was appropriate because it expressed 'the esoteric truth we wished to reach' and covered the ground of 'methods of occult scientific research.'<ref>Olcott, H. S., ''Old Diary Leaves'', v. 1 (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 132</ref><br />
It does not seem likely that the name for the Society was chosen merely out of a dictionary search, since Madame Blavatsky had already connected her knowledge with the term theosophy a few months before, in a letter to Hiram Corson:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>My belief is based on something older than the Rochester knockings [that began the Spiritualistic movement in 1848], and springs out from the same source of information that was used by Raymond Lully, Picus della Mirandola, Cornelius Agrippa, Robert Fludd, Henry More, et cetera, etc., all of whom have ever been searching for a system that should disclose to them the "deepest depths" of the Divine nature, and show them the real tie which binds all things together. I found at last, and many years ago, the cravings of my mind satisfied by this theosophy taught by the Angels and communicated by them that the protoplast might know it for the aid of the human destiny.<ref>Algeo, John (Ed.), ''The Letters of H. P. Blavatsky'', v. 1, Letter 21, (Wheaton, Il: Quest Books, TPH, 2003), p. 86.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Uses of the term by H. P. Blavatsky ==<br />
<br />
In her article "The Beacon of the Unknown" [[H. P. Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]] says there are two Theosophies: that of the true [[Theosophist]] and that of the regular fellow of the [[Theosophical Society]].<ref>Blavatsky, H. P., ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 252.</ref> The first is the "true Theosophy, inner Theosophy, that of the soul"<ref>Blavatsky, H. P., ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 254.</ref> and it is connected with the use and development of the spiritual intuition.<ref>Blavatsky, H. P., ''Collected Writings'' vol. XI (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 253.</ref> Here, the term Theosophy is used in its literal sense, as a state of ''divine wisdom'' that transcends the intellectual faculties.<br />
<br />
The second meaning of the term was defined by [[H. P. Blavatsky]] as follows: "Theosophy, as already said, is the [[Religion#Wisdom-Religion|WISDOM-RELIGION]]". In this aspect, theosophy represents a body of teachings which is claimed to form the basis of every religious truth.<br />
<br />
A third and more specific meaning was also assigned to the term by Mme. Blavatsky, to refer to the teachings that were given at the time through the [[Theosophical Society]]. The phrase "Modern Theosophy" is frequently used in this connection.<br />
<br />
== Living Theosophy ==<br />
<br />
According to one of the [[Masters of Wisdom]], Theosophy should not be seen a mere intellectual philosophy, but should express itself as a way of living based on love and the search for truth:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Theosophy can only find objective expression in an all-embracing code of life, thoroughly impregnated with the spirit of mutual tolerance, charity, and brotherly love. Its Society, as a body, has a task before it which, unless performed with the utmost discretion, will cause the world of the indifferent and the selfish to rise up in arms against it. Theosophy has to fight intolerance, prejudice, ignorance and selfishness, hidden under the mantle of hypocrisy. It has to throw all the light it can from the torch of Truth, with which its servants are entrusted. It must do this without fear or hesitation, dreading neither reproof nor condemnation. Theosophy, through its mouthpiece, the Society, has to tell the TRUTH to the very face of LIE; to beard the tiger in its den, without thought or fear of evil consequences, and to set at defiance calumny and threats. As an Association, it has not only the right, but the duty to uncloak vice and do its best to redress wrongs, whether through the voice of its chosen lecturers or the printed word of its journals and publications—making its accusations, however, as impersonal as possible. But its Fellows, or Members, have individually no such right. Its followers have, first of all, to set the example of a firmly outlined and as firmly applied morality, before they obtain the right to point out, even in a spirit of kindness, the absence of a like ethic unity and singleness of purpose in other associations or individuals. No Theosophist should blame a brother, whether within or outside of the association; neither may he throw a slur upon another’s actions or denounce him, lest he himself lose the right to be considered as a Theosophist. For, as such, he has to turn away his gaze from the imperfections of his neighbour, and centre rather his attention upon his own shortcomings, in order to correct them and become wiser. Let him not show the disparity between claim and action in another, but, whether in the case of a brother, a neighbour, or simply a fellow man, let him rather ever help one weaker than himself on the arduous walk of life.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. VII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 174-175.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== According to Annie Besant ==<br />
<br />
[[Annie Besant|Dr. Annie Besant]] talks about a primary and a secondary meaning for the word Theosophy. In her view the primary meaning has to do with the development of the ability to gain a "direct" personal knowledge of the divine. This aspect is present in the mysticism and esotericism of different religions:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Theosophy is this direct knowledge of God; the search after this is the Mysticism, or Esotericism, common to all religions, thrown by Theosophy into a scientific form, as in Hinduism, Buddhism, Roman Catholic Christianity, and Sufism. Like these, it teaches in a quite clear and definite way the methods of reaching firsthand knowledge by unfolding the spiritual consciousness, and by evolving the organs through which that consciousness can function on our earth –once more, the methods of meditation and of a discipline of life.<ref>Besant, Annie, ''Theosophy'' (London: T.C. & E.C. Jack, [1912?]), 12.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The secondary meaning lies at the level of the basic philosophical and moral teachings shared by different religions:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Theosophy, in a secondary sense–-the above being the primary-–is the body of doctrine, obtained by separating the beliefs common to all religions from the peculiarities, specialities, rites, ceremonies and customs which mark off one religion from another; it presents these common truths as a consensus of world-beliefs, forming, in their entirety, the [[Religion#Wisdom-Religion|Wisdom-religion]], or the Universal Religion, the source from which all separate religions spring, the trunk of the Tree of Life from which they all branch forth.<ref>Besant, Annie, ''Theosophy'' (London: T.C. & E.C. Jack, [1912?]), 12.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Definition by Fritz Kunz ==<br />
<br />
American Theosophist [[Fritz Kunz]] gave another perspective on the term in his entry "Theosophy" written for Runes' ''Dictionary of Philosophy'':<br />
<blockquote><br />
'''Theosophy:''' (Gr., lit. "divine wisdom") is a term introduced in the third century by [[Ammonius Saccas]], the master of [[Plotinus]], to identify a recurring tendency prompted often by renewed impulses from the Orient, but implicit in mystery schools as that of Eleusis, among the Essenes and elsewhere. Theosophy differs from speculative philosophy in allowing validity to some classes of [[Mysticism|mystical experience]] as regard [[soul]] and [[spirit]], and in recognising [[clairvoyance]] and [[telepathy]] and kindred forms of perception as linking the worlds of [[psyche]] and body. Its content describes a transcendental field as the only real (approximating to [[Brahman]], [[Nous]], and [[Pleroma]]) from which emerge material universes in series, with properties revealing that supreme Being. Two polarities appear as the first manifesting stage, [[consciousness]] or spirit ([[Brahmā|Brahma]], [[Chaos]], Holy Ghost), and matter or energy ([[Śiva|Siva]], [[Logos]], Father). Simultaneously, life appears clothed in matter and spirit, as form or species ([[Viṣṇu|Vishnu]], Cosmos, Son). In a sense, life is the direct reflection of the transcendent supreme, hence biological thinking has a privileged place in Theosophy. Thus, cycles of life are perceived in body, psyche, soul and spirit. The lesser of these is reincarnation of impersonal soul in many personalities. A larger epoch is [[Circle of Necessity|"the cycle of necessity"]], when spirit evolves over vast periods. -- F.K.<ref>Fritz Kunz, "Theosophy." Dagobart D. Runes, editor. ''Dictionary of Philosophy''. New York: Philosophical Library, 1942. Available at [http://www.ditext.com/runes/t.html Dictionary of Philosophy].</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Online resources ==<br />
===Articles and pamphlets===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Theosophy# Theosophy] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.austheos.org.au/tsia-article-is-theosophy-a-religion.html# Is Theosophy a Religion?] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1473# Theosophy's Most Holy and Important Mission] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1634# Entering the Garden of Theosophy] by Mary Anderson<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No211.pdf# Theosophy and Truth] by George S. Arundale<br />
*[http://www.philaletheians.co.uk/Major%20works/Theosophia%20Inner%20Wisdom.pdf# Theosophia. Inner Wisdom] edited by C. A. Bartzokas<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No88.pdf# Is Theosophy Anti-Christian?] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No130.pdf# The Nature of Theosophical Proofs] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No131.pdf# A Rough Outline of Theosophy] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No160.pdf# A Sketch of Theosophy] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.katinkahesselink.net/other/besant-theosophy.htm# Theosophy] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No32.pdf# Theosophy and Its Evidences] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No197.pdf# Theosophy, Its Meaning and Value] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No198.pdf# The Work of Theosophy in the World] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/IsTheosophyAReligion.htm# Is Theosophy A Religion?] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/OnPseudoTheosophy.htm# On Pseudo-Theosophy] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/theos/th-hpb.htm# What is Theosophy?] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/otherdocuments/NatureandAimofTheosophy_JDBuck.pdf# The Nature and Aim of Theosophy] by J. D. Buck<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/dogmatism-in-theosophy.htm# Dogmatism in Theosophy] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/mechanical-theosophy.htm# Mechanical Theosophy] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/practical-theosophy.htm# Practical Theosophy] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/theosophy-generally-stated.htm# Theosophy Generally Stated] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1407# Theosophy and Orthodoxy] by Pedro Oliveira<br />
*[http://www.katinkahesselink.net/other/sender-theosophy.htm# What is Theosophy?] by Pablo Sender<br />
<br />
===Books===<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/books/Theosophy_AnnieBesant.pdf# Theosophy] by Annie Besant<br />
*[http://www.anandgholap.net/Theosophy_And_TS-AB.htm# Theosophy and the Theosophical Society] by Annie Besant<br />
<br />
===Audio===<br />
*[https://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/mehta/Theosophy%20of%20the%20Invisible%20and%20the%20Intangible.mp3# Theosophy of the Invisible and the Intangible] by Rohit Mehta<br />
*[https://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/mills/Theosophy%20and%20the%20Quest%20for%20Meaning.mp3# Theosophy and the Quest for Meaning] by Joy Mills<br />
*[https://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/Downloads/mp3/mills/Theosophy:%20Search%20for%20the%20Holy%20Grail.mp3# Theosophy: Search for the Holy Grail] by Joy Mills<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=C2590EDF-14FC-4D0E-A518-4CE9E9FCBCC0# Theosophy: Who Can Say What It Is?] by Joy Mills<br />
<br />
===Video===<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=2E4ED703-E333-4A40-A244-A2B724507E1A# Theosophy and the World Religions] by Robert Ellwood<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=009C2714-0C08-4DBE-A097-863D51E2ED7C# Theosophy: Tradition, Revelation, Innovation] by Joy Mills<br />
<br />
===Social Media===<br />
* [https://www.facebook.com/theosophywatch?fref=ts Theosophy Watch] Facebook page<br />
* [https://www.facebook.com/theosophy.revealed?fref=ts Theosophy Revealed] Facebook page<br />
* [https://www.facebook.com/TheFireAndLightOfTheosophicalLiterature The Fire and Light of Theosophical Literature] Facebook page<br />
<br />
== Additional resources ==<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/resources/library/Bibliography/IntroductiontoTheosophy.pdf# Bibliography on Introductions to Theosophy] from the [[Henry S. Olcott Memorial Library]].<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Western Esotericism]]<br />
[[Category:Philosophy]]<br />
[[Category:Schools of Thought]]<br />
[[es:Teosofía]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Theosophical_Society&diff=32952Theosophical Society2017-07-04T17:47:48Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>The Theosophical Society is an organization formed in New York City on [[November 17]], 1875, by a committee of people including Russian noblewoman [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky]], American Colonel [[Henry Steel Olcott]], American attorney [[William Quan Judge]], and other individuals interested in the philosophy expounded by Madame Blavatsky.<br />
<br />
== General description ==<br />
<br />
In her ''Theosophical Glossary'', H. P. Blavatsky wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Theosophical Society, or “Universal Brotherhood”. Founded in 1875 at New York, by Colonel H. S. Olcott and H. P. Blavatsky, helped by W. Q. Judge and several others. Its avowed object was at first the scientific investigation of psychic or so-called “spiritualistic” phenomena, after which its three chief objects were declared, namely (1) Brotherhood of man, without distinction of race, colour, religion, or social position; (2) the serious study of the ancient world-religions for purposes of comparison and the selection therefrom of universal ethics; (3) the study and development of the latent divine powers in man. At the present moment it has over 250 Branches scattered all over the world, most of which are in India, where also its chief Headquarters are established. It is composed of several large Sections—the Indian, the American, the Australian, and the European Sections.<ref>Blavatsky, H. P., ''Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1918), 304.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In 1881 she wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Theosophical Society teaches no new religion, aims to destroy no old one, promulgates no creed of its own, follows no religious leader, and, distinctly and emphatically, is not a sect, nor ever was one. It admits worthy people of any religion to membership, on the condition of mutual tolerance and mutual help to discover truth. [[Founders #The Founders|The Founders]] have never consented to be taken as religious leaders, they repudiate any such idea, and they have not taken and will not take disciples. <ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. III (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1995), 4.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
== Formation ==<br />
<br />
On Tuesday, [[September 7]], 1875, a meeting was organized at [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|Mme. Blavatsky]]'s rooms to hear a lecture given by [[George H. Felt]] entitled "The Lost Canon of Proportion of the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans". About 17 people were present. During the discussion that followed the lecture, a suggestion was made that a Society be formed to pursue and promote such occult research.<br />
<br />
On the next day another meeting took place with Mr. Felt lecturing again. The Society was more definitely organized and [[Founders|sixteen people]] handed in their names for that purpose. A committee of three was appointed to draft a Constitution and Bylaws.<br />
<br />
On [[September 13]], in a new meeting at the same address, Mr. Felt gave another lecture. At this time the name of "The Theosophical Society" was agreed upon.<br />
<br />
According to Col. Olcott, the choice of the name of the newly formed Society was subject of discussion in the committee, and several options were suggested, such as the Egyptological, the Hermetic, the Rosicrucian, etc. However, none of them seemed the right one. ‘At last,’ he recalls ‘in turning over the leaves of the Dictionary, one of us came across the word “Theosophy,” whereupon, after discussion, we unanimously agreed that that was the best of all.’ Olcott explained this name was appropriate because it expressed ‘the esoteric truth we wished to reach’ and covered the ground of ‘methods of occult scientific research.’<ref>Olcott, H. S., ''Old Diary Leaves'', v. 1 (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1974), 132</ref><br />
<br />
It does not seem likely that the name for the Society was chosen merely out of a dictionary search, since Madame Blavatsky had already connected her knowledge with the term theosophy a few months before, in a letter to Hiram Corson:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>My belief is based on something older than the Rochester knockings [that began the Spiritualistic movement in 1848], and springs out from the same source of information that was used by Raymond Lully, Picus della Mirandola, Cornelius Agrippa, Robert Fludd, Henry More, et cetera, etc., all of whom have ever been searching for a system that should disclose to them the "deepest depths" of the Divine nature, and show them the real tie which binds all things together. I found at last, and many years ago, the cravings of my mind satisfied by this theosophy taught by the Angels and communicated by them that the protoplast might know it for the aid of the human destiny.<ref>Algeo, John (Ed.), ''The Letters of H. P. Blavatsky'', v. 1, Letter 21, (Wheaton, Il: Quest Books, Theosophical Publishing House, 2003), 86.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
On [[October 16]] and [[October 30]], two preliminary meetings are held in the drawing-rooms of Mrs. [[Emma Hardinge Britten]], 206 West 38th Street, New York to approve the Bylaws and elect the officers. The Mott Memorial Hall, 64 Madison Avenue, New York, was selected as the Society’s meeting place.<br />
<br />
Finally, on [[November 17]], 1875, [[Henry Steel Olcott|Col. Olcott]] delivers his Inaugural Address as President of the Theosophical Society. This date is regarded as the official founding of the organization.<br />
<br />
See also [[Founding of the Theosophical Society]]<br />
<br />
== Origin, Plan and Aims ==<br />
<br />
[[Henry Steel Olcott]] drew up a circular entitled "The Theosophical Society: Its Origin, Plan and Aims," which was made available for distribution on May 3rd, 1878. In it, he outlined the organization, offices, and membership of the organization.<ref>"The Theosophical Society: Its Origin, Plan and Aims," [http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/bcw/b78-5-3.htm Theosophical University Press Online]</ref><br />
<br />
== Move to India ==<br />
<br />
In 1879, Mme Blavatsky and Col Olcott, moved to India, where the Society spread rapidly. In 1882, they established the Society's [[Adyar (campus)|International Headquarters in Adyar]], a suburb of Madras (currently Chennai), where it has since remained. They also visited Sri Lanka, where Olcott was so active in promoting social welfare among oppressed Buddhists that even now he is a national hero of that land.<br />
<br />
==Theosophical Societies in the world==<br />
<br />
Below are listed, in alphabetical order, the different organizations using the name "Theosophical Society". For information about other Theosophical organizations see article on the [[Theosophical Movement]].<br />
<br />
<br />
[[Theosophical Society (Adyar)|The Theosophical Society (Adyar)]]<br />
<br />
[[Theosophical Society (Pasadena)|The Theosophical Society (Pasadena)]]<br />
<br />
[[Theosophical Society (Point Loma-The Hague)|The Theosophical Society (Point Loma-The Hague)]]<br />
<br />
===See also===<br />
[[United Lodge of Theosophists]]<br />
<br />
== Objects/Objectives ==<br />
<br />
The Objects of the Theosophical Society have undergone a [[Objects of the Theosophical Society#Development of the Objects|gradual development]] until they reached their current form by the end of the 19th century.<br />
<br />
The [[Theosophical Society (Adyar)#Three Declared Objects|Theosophical Society (Adyar)]] states its Objects as follows: <br />
<br />
<blockquote>1. To form a nucleus of the Universal Brotherhood of Humanity, without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or colour.<br><br />
<br />
2. To encourage the study of comparative religion, philosophy and science.<br> <br />
<br />
3. To investigate unexplained laws of Nature and the powers latent in man.<ref>Ransom, J. ''A Short History of the TS'' (????1938:???)</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
The [[Theosophical Society (Pasadena)]] has the following Objectives, as stated in its constitution:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>1- To diffuse among men a knowledge of the laws inherent in the universe;<br><br />
<br />
2- To promulgate the knowledge of the essential unity of all that is, and to demonstrate that this unity is fundamental in nature;<br><br />
<br />
3- To form an active brotherhood among men;<br><br />
<br />
4- To study ancient and modern religion, science, and philosophy;<br><br />
<br />
5- To investigate the powers innate in man.</blockquote><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://hpb.narod.ru/JoinTheosophicalSocietyBK.html# Why One Should Join The Theosophical Society] by "B.K."<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/files/about/FamilyTreeTheosophy.pdf# "Family Tree" of the Theosophical Movement] by Dorothy Bell<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/NewCycle.htm# The New Cycle] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/theos/th-origp.htm# The Original Programme of The Theosophical Society] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/OrganisationOfTheTheosophicalSociety.htm# The Organisation of the Theosophical Society] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/blavatsky/arts/TheosophicalSocietyItsMissionAndItsFuture.htm# The Theosophical Society: Its Mission and Its Future] by H. P. Blavatsky<br />
*[http://www.blavatskyfoundation.org/founding.htm# The Founding of the Theosophical Society] by Walter A. Carrithers, Jr.<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1644# From the Archives: Passage to India: A Mission from the Masters] by Paula Chernyshev Finnegan<br />
*[http://www.katinkahesselink.net/his/influence-theosophy.html# Famous People and the Impact of the Theosophical Society] Compiled by Katinka Hesselink<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/siftings/volume_5/Siftings_V5_A8.pdf# Public Speeches at the Second Annual Convention of the European Section of the Theosophical Society] by W.Q. Judge, G.R.S. Mead, Count Leiningen, H. Burrows, and A. Besant<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/future-theosophical-society.htm# The Future and the Theosophical Society] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/methods-of-theosophical-work.htm# Methods of Theosophical Work] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://www.blavatsky.net/theosophy/judge/articles/promulgation-of-theosophy.htm# The Promulgation of Theosophy] by William Q. Judge<br />
*[http://hpb.narod.ru/TSbackground.htm# The Backgroung to the Founding of the Theosophical Society] by Geoffrey Farthing<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/2750# Psychic Phenomena and the Early Theosophical Society] by Pablo Sender<br />
<br />
===Audio===<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=CC0BD2C6-C73B-4112-8A0F-E003C3AC7F6D# A Historical Look at the Theosophical Movement] by John Cooper<br />
<br />
===Video===<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=AB8942F6-A9C6-4DC4-B40E-D19CFE81B104# Who Are the Founders? Chaos, Plan, and Order in the Society's History] by John Algeo<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/online-programs/recent-webcasts/2465# The Dawning of the Theosophical Age] by Michael Gomes<br />
*[http://www.theosophicalinstitute.org/medialibrary/viewtitle.php?titleid=89D607CE-3545-4591-8202-0C544AA0667E# Manifest Destiny: Theosophical History as Spiritual Narrative] by Michael Gomes<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Organizations]]<br />
[[es:Sociedad Teosófica]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Sat&diff=32951Sat2017-07-04T17:33:17Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Sat''' (devanāgarī: सत्) is a [[Sanskrit]] adjective meaning "the ideal; pure and true essence (nature)" of an entity or existence in the [[Vedanta]]. It can thus be related to the self-existent or Universal Spirit, [[Brahman]].<br />
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In the [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature ''sat'' is frequently used to refer to the [[Absolute]]:<br />
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<blockquote>'''Sat''' (Sk.). The one ever-present Reality in the infinite world; the divine essence which is, but cannot be said to exist, as it is Absoluteness, [[Be-ness]] itself.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 292.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Notes ==<br />
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<references/><br />
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==Further reading==<br />
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*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Sat# Sat] at Theosopedia<br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Sat]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Plane&diff=32947Plane2017-07-03T16:08:28Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Plane''' is a term that in some spiritual and esoteric philosophies is used to refer to a locality or dimension, which can be physical or non-physical. The original source of the word "plane" in this context seems to be the late [[Neoplatonism|Neoplatonist]] [[Proclus]], who frequently used the word ''platos'' (πλάτος) meaning "amplitude, breadth, broadness, width", as in the expression ''en to psuchiko platei''.<ref>J. J. Poortman, ''Vehicles of Consciousness'' vol. II (Utrecht, The Netherlands: The Theosophical Society in the Netherlands 1978), 54</ref><br />
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== Definition ==<br />
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[[H. P. Blavatsky]] defined the word ''plane'' as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>'''Plane'''. From the Latin planus (level, flat) an extension of space or of something in it, whether physical or metaphysical, e.g., a “plane of consciousness”. As used in Occultism, the term denotes the range or extent of some state of consciousness, or of the perceptive power of a particular set of senses, or the action of a particular force, or the state of matter corresponding to any of the above.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 6.</ref></blockquote><br />
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[[Annie Besant]] explained:<br />
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<blockquote>A plane may be defined as a state marked off by clear characteristics; it must not be thought of as a place, [Page 9] as though the universe were made up of shells one within the other like the coats of an onion. The conception is metaphysical, not physical, the consciousness acting on each plane in fashion appropriate to each.<ref>Annie Besant, ''A Rough Outline of Theosophy'' (Adyar, Madras: Theosophical Publishing House, 1921), ???.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Seven planes ==<br />
[[File:Planes - HPB.jpg|right|200px]]<br />
The [[Theosophy|Theosophical]] literature postulates that the universe is [[Septenary Principle|seven-fold]]:<br />
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<blockquote>Our philosophy teaches us that, as there are seven fundamental forces in nature, and seven planes of being, so there are seven states of consciousness in which man can live, think, remember and have his being.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Key to Theosophy'', (London: Theosophical Publishing House, 1987), 89.</ref></blockquote><br />
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This septenary structure repeats itself at the level of the universe, the solar system, the earth, the human being, etc. Although the higher universal planes are beyond the human conception, the lower are within the range of human endeavor:<br />
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<blockquote>Believing in seven planes of Kosmic being and states of Consciousness, with regard to the Universe or the Macrocosm, we stop at the fourth plane, finding it impossible to go with any degree of certainty beyond. But with respect to the Microcosm, or man, we speculate freely on his seven states and principles.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Key to Theosophy'', (London: Theosophical Publishing House, 1987), 90.</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Macrocosmic or Solar planes ==<br />
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[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] described the manifested universe and everything in it as being [[Septenary Principle|sevenfold]]. She claimed the states of consciousness in the universe as a whole (frequently called "Kosmos" by her) was beyond the possibility of explanation. Therefore, she limited herself to describe the seven principles in the solar system (called macrocosmos) which are reflected in human beings (microcosmos):<br />
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<blockquote>The student will observe that the study of the States of Consciousness is confined to Consciousness as manifesting in the solar system. Any attempt to figure Consciousness in KOSMOS would have deceived the student by inducing him to believe that such Kosmic Consciousness could be explained, whereas the whole of even the lowest plane of Kosmos transcends the highest Adept on earth.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 657.</ref></blockquote><br />
[[File:Macrocosmic Planes.jpg|200px|left]]<br />
7th- Auric envelope or Atmic: This is the Cosmic [[Auric Egg]], also called [[Hiraṇyagarbha]]<br />
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6th- [[Ālaya]]: The Universal Soul or Oversoul.<br />
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5th- [[Mahat]]: The Universal Mind or Divine Thought.<br />
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4th- [[Fohat]]: The Cosmic Energy<br />
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3rd- [[Jīva|Jiva]]: The Universal Life.<br />
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2nd- [[Astral]]: The Astral model, reflecting on the lower planes.<br />
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1st- [[Prakṛti|Prakiti]]: The physical plane of the solar system, which is again divided into seven sub-planes.<br />
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<blockquote>This diagram represents the type of the solar system.<br><br />
The three higher divisions of this plane are inconceivable to us, and are only reached by the highest Adept in Samâdhi. Esoterically, Samâdhi is the highest state on earth attainable while in the body. Beyond that the Initiate must become a Nirmânakâya. The highest Adept begins his Samâdhi on the fourth macrocosmic plane, and cannot pass out of the solar system. When such an Adept begins his Samâdhi, he is on a par with some of the Dhyâni-Chohans, but transcends them as he rises to the seventh plane, Nirvâna.<br><br />
The “SILENT WATCHER” [see The Secret Doctrine, Vol. I, pp. 207, 208] is on the fourth plane.<br><br />
The Pratyeka-Buddha, the Buddha of Selfishness––called because of this spiritual selfishness “the rhinoceros,” the solitary animal––can never pass beyond the third plane, that of Jîva. Such a one has conquered, indeed, his material desires, but he has not yet freed himself from his mental and spiritual longings. It is the Buddha of Compassion only that can transcend this third macrocosmic plane.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 658-659.</ref></blockquote><br />
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Although human beings cannot perceive these higher planes, the is a [[correspondence]] between them and his [[principles]], and therefore, he can experience their reflection on his own level:<br />
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<blockquote>These seven planes correspond to the seven states of consciousness in man. It remains with him to attune the three higher states in himself to the three higher planes in Kosmos. But before he can attempt to attune, he must awaken the three “seats” to life and activity.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 199</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Prakritic planes ==<br />
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The lowest, or first, macrocosmic plane is called "prakritic":<br />
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<blockquote>Prakriti, the lowest plane of macrocosmic consciousness, represents the “body” of the solar systems, with its own seven subdivisions, or the seven states of Prâkritic consciousness, each corresponding to a state of the macrocosmic consciousness.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 659.</ref></blockquote><br />
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This plane is also divided into seven sub-planes, as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>7th<br />
<p><br />
6th, or Alayic-Prakritic<br />
<p><br />
5th, or Mahatic<br />
<p><br />
4th, or Fohatic<br />
<p><br />
3rd, or Jaivic<br />
<p><br />
2nd, or Astral<br />
<p><br />
1st, or Objective (Terrestrial)</p></blockquote><br />
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Mme. Blavatsky only explained the different states of consciousness experienced on the [[Astral Plane#Astral Prakritic consciousness|Astral Prakritic plane]] and the Objective Prakritic, or Terrestrial (see below).<br />
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=== According to C. W. Leadbeater ===<br />
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[[C. W. Leadbeater]] explained the relationship between the terrestrial planes and the Prakritic as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>Each physical globe has its physical plane (including its atmosphere), its astral plane, and its mental plane, all interpenetrating one another, and therefore occupying the same position in space, but all quite apart from and not communicating with the corresponding planes of any other globe. It is only when we rise to the lofty levels of the buddhic plane that we find a condition common to, at any rate, all the planets of our chain.<br><br />
Notwithstanding this, there is, as stated above, a condition of the atomic matter of each of these planes which is cosmic in its extent; so that the seven atomic sub-planes of our system, taken apart from the rest, may be said to constitute one cosmic plane - the lowest, sometimes called the cosmic-prakritic. The interplanetary ether, for example, which appears to extend through the whole of space - indeed must do so, at least to the farthest visible star, otherwise our physical eyes could not perceive that star - is composed of physical ultimate atoms in their normal and uncompressed condition. But all the lower and more complex forms of ether exist only (so far as is at present known) in connection with the various heavenly bodies, aggregated round them just as their atmosphere is, though probably extending considerably further from their surface.<ref>C. W. Leadbeater, ''The Devachanic Plane''</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Terrestrial planes ==<br />
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The first, or lowest of the prakritic plane, is called the Objective Prakritic or Terrestrial. It is also divided into seven sub-planes as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>7. Atmic consciousness, that of the Para-Ego.<br />
<p><br />
6. Buddhic, Inner-Ego.<br />
<p><br />
5. Manasic, Higher or Individual Ego<br />
<p><br />
4. Kama-Manasic, Personal Ego or Higher Psychic<br />
<p><br />
3. Pranic-Kamic or Psychic (instinct)<br />
<p><br />
2. Astral (things are reversed)<br />
<p><br />
1. Objective (plane of the senses)</p></blockquote><br />
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The states of consciousness on the seven subplanes of this Terrestrial plane have been described as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>1. Objective Sensuous Consciousness. The consciousness that pertains to the five physical senses in man and rules in animals, birds, fishes, some insects, etc. Here are the “Lives”; their consciousness is in Âtma-Buddhi; they are entirely without Manas.<br />
<p><br />
2. Astral Instinctual Consciousness. The consciousness of sensitive plants, of ants, spiders, and some night-flies (Indian), but not of bees. Among other animals the non-mammalian vertebrates are without this consciousness, but the placental mammals have all the potentialities of human consciousness, though of course dormant, or latent, at present. On this plane is the consciousness of idiots. The common phrase, “he has lost his mind,” is an occult truth; for when, through fright or other cause, the lower mind becomes paralyzed, then the consciousness acts on the astral plane. The study of lunacy will throw much light on this point. This may well be called the “nerve plane.” It is cognized by our “nervous senses,” of which, as yet, modern physiology knows nothing. Hence it is that a clairvoyant can read with the eyes bandaged, with the tips of the fingers, the pit of the stomach, etc. This consciousness is greatly developed in the deaf and dumb. On this plane everything is reversed, reflected upside down.<br />
<p><br />
3. Kâma-Prânic, or Physiological-Emotional Consciousness. This is the general life-consciousness which belongs to the objective world, even to the stone; for if the stones were not living they could not decay, crumble away, or emit a spark. Affinity between chemical elements is a manifestation of this, Kâma-Prânic consciousness. To this plane, also, belong the life-preservative instincts, as for instance that which prevents a kitten going into the water and getting drowned.<br />
[A stone could not crumble unless there was life throughout it; for the crumbling is not due only to friction by water, air, etc., or the action of frost, but to the fact that every particle in the stone is in a state of active vibration, performing rhythmical motions, not in a state of inertia. These life-waves, pulsing in the stone, throw its molecules apart, thus enabling foreign matters and influences to enter between them, force them farther apart, and so cause crumbling away. Even this is not all: the vibratory action of the life itself, apart from any interference from without, tends to ultimately disrupt the combinations of molecules that make up the stone.]<br />
<p><br />
4. Kâma-Mânasic, or Psychic, or Passional-Emotional Consciousness. In animals and idiots the instinctual consciousness on the lower planes of sensation is in this state; in man these are rationalized. For instance, if a dog is shut up in a room, it has the instinct to get out, but is unable to do so because this instinct is not sufficiently rationalized to take the means necessary for its liberation. A man at once takes in the situation, and lets himself out. The highest degrees of this Kâma-Mânasic consciousness are psychic, there being within this sub-plane, as with all others, seven degrees from the instinctual and psychic.<br />
<p><br />
5. Mânasic or Mental-Emotional Consciousness. From this plane Manas stretches up to Mahat.<br />
<p><br />
6. Buddhic, or Spiritual Emotional Consciousness. The plane of Buddhi or of the Auric Envelope. From this plane consciousness goes to the “Father in Heaven,” Âtman, reflecting all that is in the Auric Envelope. The Mânasic and Buddhic states cover the planes from the Noëtic to the Divine, but it is impossible at this stage to define them intelligibly. Call the highest plane x if you will. You can’t understand it.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 661-662.</ref></blockquote><br />
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In the teachings of the "Inner Group" there is the following additional information was given:<ref>Henk J. Spierenburg (compiler), ''The Inner Group Teachings of H. P. Blavatsky'' (San Diego, CA: Point Loma Publications, Inc, 1995), 29</ref><br />
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<blockquote><br />
1. This objective, or sensuous, plane is that which is sensed by the five physical senses.<br />
<p><br />
2. On its second plane, objects are reversed.<br />
<p><br />
3. Its third plane is psychic, here is the instinct which prevents a kitten going into the water and getting drowned.<br />
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The following table of the terrestrial consciousness was given:<br />
<p><br />
1. Sensuous<p><br />
2. Instinctual<p><br />
3. Physiological emotional<p><br />
4. Passional<p><br />
5. Mental<p><br />
6. Spiritual<p><br />
7. X</blockquote></p><br />
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== Human States of Consciousness ==<br />
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Human beings are the microcosmos of the macrocosmos. They also show a septenary consciousness:<br />
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<blockquote>This figure represents the human consciousness, which may be on any of the planes or sub-planes of Prakriti. The names represent the correspondences of the human principles, so called, with the Prâkritic and the macrocosmic States of Consciousness.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XII (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1980), 659.</ref></blockquote><br />
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[[File:Human States of Cosnciousness.JPG|200px|left]]<br />
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7th Auric or Atmic<br />
<p><br />
6th Buddhi-Manasic<br />
<p><br />
5th Manasic<br />
<p><br />
4th Kama-Manasic<br />
<p><br />
3rd Kama-Pranic<br />
<p><br />
2nd Astral<br />
<p><br />
1st Objective</p><br />
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These states of consciousness take place on any of the Prakritic planes.<br />
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== Later teachings ==<br />
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[[Annie Besant]] and [[C. W. Leadbeater]] offered a modified organization of the planes, not based on the different states of consciousness possible in them, as [[H. P. Blavatsky]] did, but on the kind of matter they are composed of. Thus, they regarded the Manasic and Kama-Manasic planes as being really one, the mental plane, which can be subdivided into higher (manasic) and lower (kama-manasic). Their Astral plane included Blavatsky's Pranic-Kamic and Astral (or at least its higher sub-planes), while the physical plane could be subdivided in two: the "dense" half (which corresponds with the "objective"), and the etheric (which probably corresponds with the lower subplanes of Blavatsky's "astral". Buddhi and Atman remain the same.<br />
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== See also ==<br />
*[[Loka]]<br />
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==Online resources== <br />
===Articles and pamphlets===<br />
*[http://theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Planes_in_Theosophy# Planes in Theosophy] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.ca/adyar_pamphlets/AdyarPamphlet_No40.pdf# The Reality of the Invisible and the Actuality of the Unseen Worlds] by Annie Besant<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Planos]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Parini%E1%B9%A3panna&diff=32946Pariniṣpanna2017-07-03T15:50:31Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Pariniṣpanna''' (devanāgarī: परिनिष्पन्न) is a [[Sanskrit]] term meaning "developed, perfect, real, existing."<ref>[http://spokensanskrit.de/index.php?script=DI&beginning=0+&tinput=pariniSpanna+&trans=Translate&direction=AU# Pariniṣpanna] at Spoken Sanskrit Dictionary</ref><br />
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== Theosophical view ==<br />
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According to [[H. P. Blavatsky]] this state (spelled by her as "paranishpanna") is a synonym of "[[parinirvana]]". She defined it as follows:<br />
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<blockquote>“Paranishpanna” is the absolute perfection to which all existences attain at the close of a great period of activity, or Maha-Manvantara, and in which they rest during the succeeding period of repose. In Tibetan it is called [[Yongs-grub|Yong-Grüb]].<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 42.</ref></blockquote><br />
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During [[pralaya|maha-pralaya]] everything reverts to this state. Parinishpanna (or parinirvana) can be experienced consciously or unconsciously:<br />
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<blockquote>The condition of Paranishpanna, without Paramârtha, the Self-analysing consciousness (Svasamvedana), is no bliss, but simply extinction (for Seven Eternities). . . . It is only “with a mind clear and undarkened by personality, and an assimilation of the merit of manifold existences devoted to being in its collectivity (the whole living and sentient Universe),” that one gets rid of personal existence, merging into, becoming one with, the Absolute, and continuing in full possession of Paramârtha.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 53-54.</ref></blockquote><br />
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When experienced consciously it is a state of bliss and absolute wisdom:<br />
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<blockquote>Paranishpanna, remember, is the summum bonum, the Absolute, hence the same as Paranirvana. Besides being the final state it is that condition of subjectivity which has no relation to anything but the one absolute truth (Para-mârthasatya) on its plane. It is that state which leads one to appreciate correctly the full meaning of Non-Being, which, as explained, is absolute Being. Sooner or later, all that now seemingly exists, will be in reality and actually in the state of Paranishpanna.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 53.</ref></blockquote><br />
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==See also==<br />
*[[Nirvāṇa#Parinirvāṇa|Parinirvāṇa]]<br />
*[[Yongs-grub]]<br />
*[[Dharmatā]]<br />
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==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Paranishpanna# Paranishpanna] at Theosopedia<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Buddhist concepts]]<br />
[[es:Paranishpanna]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Parabrahman&diff=32945Parabrahman2017-07-03T15:35:38Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Parabrahman''' (devanāgarī: परब्रह्मन्) from ''para'' "beyond" and ''Brahman'' "universal self or spirit", is a term often used in [[Hinduism|Hindu]] philosophy, especially in [[Advaita Vedanta]], for the highest deity, or, rather, the [[Absolute Reality]] that is beyond gods.<br />
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== Blavatsky on Parabrahman ==<br />
In the writings of [[H. P. Blavatsky]] ''Parabrahman'' is frequently used as a synonym for the [[Absolute]] or the [[Be-ness]]:<br />
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<blockquote>Parabrahm (the One Reality, the [[Absolute]]) is the field of Absolute Consciousness, i.e., that Essence which is out of all relation to conditioned existence, and of which conscious existence is a conditioned symbol. But once that we pass in thought from this (to us) Absolute Negation, duality supervenes in the contrast of Spirit (or consciousness) and Matter, Subject and Object. Spirit (or Consciousness) and Matter are, however, to be regarded, not as independent realities, but as the two facets or aspects of the Absolute (Parabrahman), which constitute the basis of conditioned Being whether subjective or objective.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 15</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>At the commencement of a great [[Manvantara]], Parabrahm manifests as [[Mulaprakriti]] and then as the [[Logos]]. This [[Logos]] … constitutes the Basis of the subject-side of manifested Being, and is the source of all manifestations of individual consciousness. [[Mulaprakriti]] or Primordial Cosmic Substance, is the foundation of the object-side of things — the basis of all objective evolution and Cosmogenesis. Force, then, does not emerge with Primordial Substance from Parabrahmic Latency.<br />
<br />
It is the transformation into energy of the supra-conscious thought of the [[Logos]], infused, so to speak, into the objectivation of the latter out of potential latency in the One Reality.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. II, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 24</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>This “Be-ness” is symbolised in the Secret Doctrine under two aspects. On the one hand, absolute abstract Space, representing bare subjectivity, the one thing which no human mind can either exclude from any conception, or conceive of by itself. On the other, absolute abstract Motion representing Unconditioned Consciousness. Even our Western thinkers have shown that Consciousness is inconceivable to us apart from change, and motion best symbolizes change, its essential characteristic. This latter aspect of the one Reality, is also symbolized by the term “The Great Breath,” a symbol sufficiently graphic to need no further elucidation. Thus, then, the first fundamental axiom of the Secret Doctrine is this metaphysical One Absolute — Be-ness — symbolized by finite intelligence as the theological Trinity<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 14</ref></blockquote><br />
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== Shankara’s idea of the Parabrahman ==<br />
[[Śaṅkarācārya|Shankara]] has said that the ultimate reality is the Parabrahman and there is only one Supreme Parabrahman and all the other deities are the forms and expansions of this Parabrahman.<br />
<br />
<blockquote><br />
By reflecting on Upanishadic assertions, Shankara made a distinction between [[Brahma]] as it must be in itself and as it has got to be conceived by us in relation with the world of our experience.<br />
<br />
The former he calls ''nirguna'' Brahma, ''nirvishesha'' or Parabrahman, and the latter, ''saguna'', ''savishesha'' or apara Brahma.<br />
<br />
Parabrahman is also called [[Sat]] (being or existence), [[Paramartha#Param.C4.81rtha-satya|Paramartha-satya]] (ultimate reality), Paramartha-tattva (highest entity) and Bhuma (absolute, great or unexcelled). <br />
</blockquote><br />
<blockquote><br />
Parabrahman is eternally self-identical, strictly one, always of the same nature, without parts, and hence without change, perfectly immutable in its essential nature, indestructible because of knowing no increase or decrease, imperceptible, inconceivable, ungraspable, devoid of all qualities, without parts, untouched by action, perfectly quiet, pure and stainless, neither coarse nor fine, neither big nor small.<br />
Neither space nor time can be conceived in it; for it is neither this nor that. It is great, unborn, undecaying or unaging, indestructible, immortal and free from all fear.<br />
<br />
It is different from vice and virtue both, and different from both cause and effect. The triple-time designated as past, present and future does not enter into its nature. It is not in time nor time in it. So also neither space is in it, nor it, in space. It has neither inside or outside, no cause, no effect. In fact, none of the categories in terms of which we understand things is applicable to it. It is indefinable because it is indeterminate. A definition must be per genus et differentiam.<ref>For definition please see article [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genus%E2%80%93differentia_definition# Genus–differentia]</ref> But (Para) Brahma has neither genus nor differentia. <br />
<br />
It is the highest Being, and there is nothing existing independently of it, from which it could be distinguished. Though beyond all time and space, etc., it permeates all. Just as the great space ([[Ākāśa]]) pervades the space within a jar, so also (Para) Brahma, called [[Sat]], pervades the entire universe, including the space itself. All the same, it is, in its essential nature, altogether unconditioned, and devoid of all qualities which characterize the world we live in. Parts or properties it has none. It is non-related (asanga and asansargi), and devoid of all adjuncts and differences.<br />
<br />
This however does not mean that it is not nothing. To negate qualities of (Para) Brahma is not to negate its Being or existence. In fact, all existence that appears to be there is said to be the existence of (Para) Brahma itself. It is eternally self-existent, and hence the only real entity. It is the ultimate source, ground and support of all appearances. It is the existence that shines forth in all beings alike. It is the universal Self of all of us. And our undeniable experience of our existence, Shankara has maintained, is the surest proof of its existence.<ref>Dr. R. S. Naulakha M.A., Ph.D, ''Shankara’s Brahmavada'' (Acharya Nagar, Kanpur: Kitab Ghar Publishing, 1964), 63.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
[[File:Perkins - Parabrahman.jpg|right|260px|thumb|Illustration by James S. Perkins]]<br />
== Perkins concept of Parabrahman ==<br />
<br />
[[James S. Perkins]] painted a visualization of Parabrahman, and wrote:<br />
<blockquote><br />
The Unknowable One, termed in Sanskrit ''Parabrahman'', is seen here '''[illustration at right]''' as cold flame wrapped in profoundest mystery, pointed downward into the ocean of [[matter]], the mother of universes. Then "[[Father-Mother|Father-Mother]] spin a web" that embraces the new universal boundary. The solitary [[Seven Rays|ray]] is Divine energy that brings to birth a star in its appointed center. The star is the embodiment of the [[Solar Logos]]. His light expands through the luminous sphere. It is the first veil of spirit-matter over the primordial [[Space|Space-Consciousness]] of Parabrahman. The first veil is the solar [[Adi]], the primeval plane of Nature that measures the circumference of the new universe. Other universes exist in untold numbers and sizes.<ref>James S. Perkins, ''Visual Meditations on the Universe'' (Wheaton, Illinois: Theosophical Publishing House, 1984), 15.</ref><br />
</blockquote><br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Parabrahman# Parabrahman] at Theosopedia<br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu mythology]]<br />
[[es:Parabrahman]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Nirv%C4%81%E1%B9%87a&diff=32944Nirvāṇa2017-07-03T14:46:57Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Nirvāṇa''' (devanāgarī: निर्वाण) is a central concept in Indian religions. The word literally means "blowing out"—referring in the [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] context, to the blowing out of the fires of greed, hatred, and delusion, or simply of all consciousness. In [[Shramana|sramanic]] thought it is the state of being free from suffering. In [[Hinduism|Hindu philosophy]] it is the union with [[Brahman]] through [[mokṣa]].<br />
<br />
== Theosophical view ==<br />
<br />
[[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky|H. P. Blavatsky]] rejected the idea that Nirvana merely means the extintion of all consciousness:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Very often we are confronted with the statement: “you talk about Nirvāna. What is Nirvāna? It is an extinction, it is just like a flame that is blown out from the candle; there remains nothing. Nirvāna—‘the flame out’.” I had how many times to have disputes and discussions about that. I said it is not that at all. It is that every particle of [[matter]], of that which may have form in our conception or be conditioned or limited, everything disappears to make room for one homogeneity, and for the one [[Absolute|absolute spirit]]. But this spirit is not at all; it is non-consciousness for us, but it is absolute consciousness there.<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 339.</ref></blockquote><br />
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<blockquote>'''Nirvana''' (Sk.). According to the[ Orientalists, the entire "blowing out", like the flame of a candle, the utter extinction of existence. But in the esoteric explanations it is the state of absolute existence and absolute consciousness, into which the Ego of a man who has reached the highest degree of perfection and holiness during life goes, after the body dies, and occasionally, as in the case of Gautama Buddha and others, during life.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 232.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>[W]hat is the good of a virtuous life, full of privations and suffering, if the only result of it is to be annihilation at the end? If even the attainment of that supreme perfection which leads the Initiate to remember the whole series of his past lives, and to foresee that of the future ones, by the full development of that inner, divine eye in him, and to acquire the knowledge that unfolds the causes [Nidānas] of the ever-recurring cycles of existence, brings him finally to non-being, and nothing more— then the whole system is idiotic, and Epicureanism is far more philosophical than such Buddhism. He who is unable to comprehend the subtle, and yet so potent, difference between existence in a material or physical state and a purely spiritual existence—Spirit or “Soul-life”—will never appreciate at their full value the grand teachings of the Buddha, even in their exoteric form. Individual or personal existence is the cause of pains and sorrows; collective and impersonal life-eternal is full of divine bliss and joy for ever, with neither causes nor effects to darken its light. And the hope for such a life-eternal is the keynote of the whole of Buddhism.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XIV (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1995), 432.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
[[Damodar K. Mavalankar]] questioned the use of the term Nirvana "as a synonym for annihilation", and explains:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Yes: it is annihilation, not of the spiritual Ego, but of the lower principles in man, of the animal Soul, the personality which must perish. . . . A careful study of the Fragments of Occult Truth and other literature on Esoteric Theosophy knows that these lower principles are destructible and must therefore be annihilated. . . . the white magician, by his training as described in the Elixir of Life, gradually kills his lower principles, without any suffering, thus extending over a long period their dissolution; and his Manas identifies itself with his higher — the sixth and seventh — principles. Every tyro in Occultism knows that the sixth principle being but the vehicle of the seventh — which is all-pervading, eternal essence — must be permanent. From the foregoing remarks it is evident that it is the black magician whose lot is annihilation; while the adept, the white magician, enjoys the blissful condition of absolute existence where there is no pain or pleasure, no sorrow or joy, since these are all relative terms, and the state is one of supreme bliss; in short the latter enjoys an immortality of life.<ref>Damodar K. Mavalankar, "White and Black Magic," Supplement to The Theosophist vol 5 (February, 1884), p. 42.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
According to Mme. Blavatsky "there are two kinds of Nirvâṇa: the earthly, and that of the purely disembodied Spirits".<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. XIV (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1995), 436, fn.</ref> In [[Mahatma Letter No. 119#Page 3|one of his letters]], [[Koot Hoomi|Master K.H.]] said that Nirvana is experienced in the "seventh state of matter".<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr., ''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 119 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 407.</ref><br />
<br />
== Parinirvāṇa ==<br />
<br />
In Buddhism, parinirvana is the final nirvana, which occurs upon the death of the body of someone who has attained complete awakening (bodhi). The parinirvana ([[Pāli]]: ''parinibbana'') of [[Gautama Buddha]] is described in the Mahāparinibbāna sutta.<br />
<br />
In Blavatsky's writings the term "paranirvana" is used to refer to the state the universe enters at "the great day of Be-with-Us",<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 134.</ref></blockquote> when:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>. . . everything becomes one, all individualities are merged into one, yet each knowing itself, a mysterious teaching indeed. But then, that which to us now is non-consciousness or the unconscious, will then be absolute consciousness.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 405.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
This "day" does not come after a [[Pralaya#Planetary pralaya|planetary pralaya]], but only at the end of the [[maha-manvantara]], when the universal pralaya sets in:<ref>Michael Gomes (transcriber), ''The Secret Doctrine Commentaries'' (The Hague: I.S.I.S. foundation, 2010), 385.</ref><br />
<br />
<blockquote>In Paranirvana — when Pralaya will have reduced not only material and psychical bodies, but even the spiritual Ego(s) to their original principle — the Past, Present, and even Future Humanities, like all things, will be one and the same. Everything will have re-entered the Great Breath. In other words, everything will be ‘merged in Brahma’ or the divine unity.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 265-266.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In parinivana all things are in [[pariniṣpanna]] or absolute perfection.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 53.</ref><br />
<br />
During the course of the manvantara it is said that there is a "[[Ring Pass-Not]]" that prevents embodied consciousness from entering in this state.<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<br />
<references/><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Nirv%C4%81%E1%B9%87a# Nirvāṇa] at Theosopedia<br />
<br />
===Books===<br />
*[http://www.anandgholap.net/Nirvana-GSA.htm# Nirvana - A Study in Synthetic Consciousness] by George S. Arundale<br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Buddhist concepts]]<br />
[[es:Nirvāṇa]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=M%C4%81y%C4%81&diff=32852Māyā2017-06-30T16:09:45Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
<hr />
<div>'''Māyā''' (devanāgarī: माया) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that in Indian religions has multiple meanings. Usually translated as "illusion" (from ''mā'' "not" and ''yā'' "this"), it points out the fact that we do not experience the reality but only a false image perceived by our minds, as when one pursues a mirage in the desert or mistakes a rope for a snake.<br />
<br />
It is also regarded as "the cosmic power which renders phenomenal existence and the perceptions thereof possible."<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 211.</ref> Thus, in early Vedic mythology, maya was the power with which the gods created and maintained the physical universe.<br />
<br />
Both in [[Hinduism|Hindu]] philosophy and in [[Theosophy]] only that "which is changeless and eternal is called reality; all that which is subject to change through decay and differentiation and which has therefore a begining and an end is regarded as mâyâ—illusion."<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Theosophical Glossary'' (Krotona, CA: Theosophical Publishing House, 1973), 211.</ref> As [[H. P. Blavatsky]] wrote:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>The Universe is called, with everything in it, MAYA, because all is temporary therein, from the ephemeral life of a fire-fly to that of the Sun. Compared to the eternal immutability of the ONE, and the changelessness of that Principle, the Universe, with its evanescent ever-changing forms, must be necessarily, in the mind of a philosopher, no better than a will-o’-the-wisp. Yet, the Universe is real enough to the conscious beings in it, which are as unreal as it is itself.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 274</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Maya or illusion is an element which enters into all finite things, for everything that exists has only a relative, not an absolute, reality, since the appearance which the hidden noumenon assumes for any observer depends upon his power of cognition. To the untrained eye of the savage, a painting is at first an unmeaning confusion of streaks and daubs of colour, while an educated eye sees instantly a face or a landscape. Nothing is permanent except the one hidden absolute existence which contains in itself the noumena of all realities. The existences belonging to every plane of being, up to the highest Dhyan-Chohans, are, in degree, of the nature of shadows cast by a magic lantern on a colourless screen; but all things are relatively real, for the cogniser is also a reflection, and the things cognised are therefore as real to him as himself. Whatever reality things possess must be looked for in them before or after they have passed like a flash through the material world; but we cannot cognise any such existence directly, so long as we have sense-instruments which bring only material existence into the field of our consciousness. Whatever plane our consciousness may be acting in, both we and the things belonging to that plane are, for the time being, our only realities. As we rise in the scale of development we perceive that during the stages through which we have passed we mistook shadows for realities, and the upward progress of the Ego is a series of progressive awakenings, each advance bringing with it the idea that now, at last, we have reached “reality;” but only when we shall have reached the absolute Consciousness, and blended our own with it, shall we be free from the delusions produced by Maya.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 39-40</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
<blockquote>Concrete realities for the Entities of whose experience they form a part, in the same manner as the rocks and rivers around us, are real from the stand-point of a physicist, though unreal illusions of sense from that of the metaphysician. . . . From the stand-point of the highest metaphysics, the whole Universe, gods included, is an illusion. . . . The pure object apart from consciousness is unknown to us, while living on the plane of our three-dimensional World; as we know only the mental states it excites in the perceiving Ego. And, so long as the contrast of Subject and Object endures—to wit, as long as we enjoy our five senses and no more, and do not know how to divorce our all-perceiving Ego (the Higher Self) from the thraldom of these senses—so long will it be impossible for the personal Ego to break through the barrier which separates it from a knowledge of things in themselves (or [[Substance]]).<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I, (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 329-330.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
==Online resources==<br />
===Articles===<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=M%C4%81y%C4%81# Māyā] at Theosopedia<br />
*[http://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/1402# The Dual Nature of Reality] by Richard Smoley<br />
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== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Māyā]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Mok%E1%B9%A3a&diff=32851Mokṣa2017-06-30T16:04:41Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>'''Mokṣa''' (devanāgarī: मोक्ष) is a [[Sanskrit]] word that means "liberation" from [[samsara]], the cycle of death and rebirth or [[reincarnation]] and all of the suffering and limitation of worldly existence. It is a state of absolute freedom, peace and bliss.<br />
<br />
<br />
==Further reading==<br />
<br />
*[http://www.theosophy.ph/encyclo/index.php?title=Mok%E1%B9%A3a# Mokṣa] at Theosopedia<br />
<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit terms]]<br />
[[Category:Hindu concepts]]<br />
[[es:Mokṣa]]</div>Francisco Cuevashttps://theosophy.wiki/w-en/index.php?title=Cosmic_Matter&diff=32850Cosmic Matter2017-06-30T15:55:26Z<p>Francisco Cuevas: Link to Spanish Version was added</p>
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<div>[[File:Cosmic matter.jpg|right|300px]]<br />
'''Cosmic Matter''' is the first differentiation of [[space]] or [[Substance#Pre-cosmic_substance|pre-cosmic substance]]. [[Koot Hoomi|Mahatma K.H.]] defined it as "the imaginary materia prima itself one of the manifestations (6th principle) of the one element."<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr. ''Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 67 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 184</ref> This one element "not only fills space and is space, but interpenetrates every atom of cosmic matter."<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr. ''Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 67 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993), 187</ref> <br />
<br />
The first differentiation of the pre-cosmic substance produces the homogeneous primordial matter:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>That Spirit—call it the “Spirit of God” or Primordial Substance—mirrors itself in the Waters of Space— or the still undifferentiated matter of the future Universe —and produces thereby the first flutter of differentiation in the homogeneity of primordial matter.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. X (Wheaton, IL: Theosophical Publishing House, 1988), 406.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In its highest aspect, this cosmic matter is equated with [[Akasa]].<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr. ''Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 18 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993) 63.</ref> On a lower plane, the cosmic matter is some times referred to as [[Prakriti]]:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>Prakriti is cosmic matter, out of which all visible forms are produced; and Akasha that same cosmic matter—but still more imponderable, its spirit, as it were, “Prakriti” being the body or substance, and Akasha-Shakti its soul or energy.<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''Collected Writings'' vol. III (Wheaton, Ill: Theosophical Publishing House, 1954), fn. 405.</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
Finally, on the physical plane, this cosmic matter is the origin of the “Milky Way”, the matter we know:<br />
<br />
<blockquote>This “matter,” which, according to the revelation received from the primeval Dhyani-Buddhas, is, during the periodical sleep of the Universe, of the ultimate tenuity conceivable to the eye of the perfect Bodhisatva — this matter, radical and cool, becomes, at the first reawakening of cosmic motion, scattered through Space; appearing, when seen from the Earth, in clusters and lumps, like curds in thin milk. These are the seeds of the future worlds, the “Star-stuff.”<ref>Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, ''The Secret Doctrine'' vol. I (London: The Theosohpical Publishing House, 1978), 69</ref></blockquote><br />
<br />
In the Theosophical view, the cosmic matter is eternal<ref>Vicente Hao Chin, Jr. ''Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett in chronological sequence'' No. 90 (Quezon City: Theosophical Publishing House, 1993)</ref> and during the maha-pralaya it reverts to the state of pre-cosmic substance.<br />
<br />
== Notes ==<br />
<references/><br />
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<br />
[[Category:Theosophical concepts]]<br />
[[Category:Concepts in The Secret Doctrine]]<br />
[[es:Materia Cósmica]]</div>Francisco Cuevas