The Divine Plan (book)

The Divine Plan by Geoffrey A. Barborka, 1961. Written in the Form of a Commentary on H. P. Blavatsky's Secret Doctrine Expressly for the Purpose of Those Who Wish to Read and Gain a Deeper Understanding of The Secret Doctrine --- Presenting an Exposition of the Doctrines of the Esoteric Philosophy, Analysing and Explaining All the Terms Used.

Reviews

Laura Gaunt

Without any doubt this is one of the most important Theosophical books to come out since 1888, for it contains within its 564 pages the potential to revivify even the most moribund lodge with the trenchant rationality of H.P.B. The Divine Plan is not, and was not designed to be, a substitute for The Secret Doctrine, but by separating the essentially philosophical elements of the latter from the polemical method which H.P.B. was forced to employ Mr. Barborka has created an invaluable outline of the original teachings of Theosophy.

In "an exposition of the doctrines of the esoteric philosophy analysing and explaining all the terms used" Mr. Barborka has revealed to us the grand logic of the philosophical system expounded in The Secret Doctrine. You will say that this is not news to any student worthy of the name. True. However, this book is unique in its clarity and its modus operandi. Mr. Barborka has made every single point in his exposition by direct quotation from the original edition of The Secret Doctrine, from The Voice of the Silence, from Isis Unveiled, from Five Years of Theosophy, from The Theosophical Glossary, from Transactions of the Blavatsky Lodge, from The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett, and from The Letters of H.P. Blavatsky to A.P. Sinnett. Mr. Barborka's triumph is that now for the first time the Theosophical Society is in possession of a concise, clear, scholarly, and fully documented outline of those fundamental propositions which it has been its mission to propagate, however modestly. To quote from the Preface:

It will very soon be apparent that in this work The Secret Doctrine is being considered by means of subjects - or rather by Doctrines. In this method the chapters are arranged in a sequence which leads the mind from one doctrine to the next in an interrelated pattern.

Mr. Barborka has achieved the seemingly impossible task of analysis and exposition while remembering the limitations of the common reader. As he points out:

In order to read The Secret Doctrine understandingly it is necessary to know: (1) the meaning of a term itself - in the case of Sanskrit, going to the root-meaning of the word is of great importance; (2) the manner in which the term is used in relation to the passage; (3) the meaning of the whole passage; (4) the relation of the passage to the doctrine as a whole; (5) whether the term of passage is used in a generalizing sense or specifically; (6) whether a symbolical meaning is being employed; (7) whether more than one interpretation is applicable.

By careful quotation from the source books mentioned above Mr. Barborka has succeeded admirably in his task of clarification. As well, Sanskrit terms are explained as they are used, in detail, and an effective key to pronunciation is found at the beginning of the volume. In addition, after each quotation from The Secret Doctrine is given the page and volume reference for not only the original edition but also for the Third and Revised Edition, published in two volumes in 1893, and the Adyar volume editions.

Indeed, if Mr. Barborka had written no more than his "enumeration" of the eight divine laws he would still deserve the gratitude of everyone who has ever tried to explain to a stranger what the Theosophical Society is all about! Following this brief definition in the "Introductory", The Law of Periodicity, The Law of Adjustment, The Law of Essential Unity, The Law of Self-Unfoldment, The Law of Motion, The Septenary Law, The Law of Compassion, The Law of Coming into Being are all explored in depth in the book proper.

Surely, the author's purpose to aid students and lecturers has been amply fulfilled! There is no longer the slightest shadow of an excuse for rambling or vagueness on the Theosophical platform when everyone, no matter how pressed for time, has it within his power to be fully informed.

Joy Mills

Master Hilarion is said to served as a conduit in the writing of Light on the Path, as the rules came "not from the Master Hilarion but through him from the far distant past." He further contributed the commentaries on the stanzas that are included in the published work. In an analysis by John Hamaker, Collins' book gives evidence of the influence of the fifth ray on the Theosophical Society. The fifth ray is identified with the human impulse toward learning that is manifested in organized science. Hilarion was "leader and teacher of the group of souls whose line of progress lies through the quality that is the fifth ray..."

In Light on the Path we catch a glimpse of the fifth ray... the presence of the spirit of science can clearly be discerned. The first thing we see is the presence of a well defined structure. We are impressed by the simplicity and economy of both its structure and its language. In this is a beautiful expression of the way of science, in as much as science truly is the art and specialty of creating forms of the stuff of the mind."