Book Review: Masters of Wisdom: The Mahatmas, Their Letters, and the Path - Edward Abdill
And
so a new book on the Mahatma letters has been released by mainstream
publisher Penguin Books. Who are these mysterious mahatmas, adepts,
brothers, so closely connected with Blavatsky and the Theosophical
Society and who have been the source of so much questioning, curiosity
and doubt? The mystery was considerably lessened (and at the same time
increased) by the actual publication, in the early twenties, of their
many letters to various individuals, namely the thick Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett, and the Letters of the Masters of the Wisdom, vols. 1 & 2.
And one could say that these publications, especially the first one,
represent the last big mainstream impact of the theosophical movement,
causing quite a stir at the time and going through something like ten
editions in ten years.
Although
the letters are at times quite personal with lots of discussions about
practical business, nonetheless they are also often quite eloquent,
framed in the time-honored literary tradition of letters of spiritual
advice. Moreover, prior to their publication, these letters were
apparently widely copied and circulated and influenced a lot of the
early writings, notably Sinnett’seminal Esoteric Buddhism, which remains one of the clearer expositions of the distinctive notions of cosmology and spiritual evolution.
Indeed the original letters to Sinnett have been scanned by the British Museum and have taken quite a new life on the internet:
The book gives a broad, succinct overview of many aspects covered in the various letters, in 21 compact chapters:
1-Blavatsky
and the mahatmas; 2-Mahatmas: What Are They? Who Are They?;3-Early
Letters; 4-God, Evil, and Occult Philosophy;5- Karma; 6-Our Sevenfold
Nature; 7-From Death to Rebirth;8- Science; 9-Working to Mold the
Future; 10-Founding of the Theosophical Society; 11-Alleged Encounters
with Masters; 12-Forgery and Plagiarism; 13-There is a Road; 14-The
Search for Meaning; 15-The Golden Stairs;16-Pitfalls on the Path; 17-
Selfishness, Pride, and Egoism; 18-Desire and Attachment; 19-Study,
Meditation, and Service; 20-Lay Chelas and Chelas; 21-Working as
Colleagues with the Masters
The
original letters on cosmology, reincarnation and karma can actually be
pretty difficult and Abdill does a good job of simplifying and
systematizing the concepts, borrowing liberally from Blavatsky’s
writings to clarify certain obscurities. He also does a good job at
showing the human practical side of this mysterious esoteric
brotherhood, in the sense that they can be seen to express themselves
quite frankly and lucidly when it comes to Blavatsky’s often enigmatic
character, not without a certain sense of humour. But even this critical
aspect has useful pedagogical value if one considers that, in the case
of many American and European recipients, they were merely very minutely
and patiently addressing the problems and pitfalls of a materialist,
individualistic western society steeped in the colonialist mentality of
the time that, to a certain extent, continue to mark modern western
society.
The author shows a good familiarity
with the material and gives an accessible, contemporary interpretation
noticeably based in the Besant/Leadbeater/clairvoyance/chakra/Christian
approach and so one encounters the occasional quirky concept not easily
traceable to Blavatsky or her teachers, in a certain sense showing that a
more straightforward anthology with less commentary and more
historical/ technical annotations could also be a viable approach.
Nonetheless,
I think that overall, the book shows that it is possible to build a
coherent contemporary presentation of all the basic theosophical tenets
firmly grounded in this enigmatic collection of letters and so makes for
a solid introduction for those who wish to explore the original
writings; a welcome return of the Mahatma letters to mainstream
publishing.
PS. The author issued this correction on his facebook page:
"Retraction: On page 120 of Masters of Wisdom I quoted Olcott's claim
that Judge told Mrs. Besant that if she went to Adyar he (Olcott) might
poison her. Subsequently I have learned that Olcott may have been
mistaken. Olcott’s memory may have become faulty or he may have taken a
metaphorical statement literally. Whatever the case, I hope we can all
focus on the very real contributions Judge and Olcott made to the
Theosophical cause and let the events of 1894-95 die. As is almost
always the case in disputes, there are two sides and perhaps a third
which is the truth. I regret having included the quote and should there
be further editions of the book I shall remove it."
