Blavatsky and contemporary politics 3/5 - General Influence

In the last forty years, studies of the influence of Blavatsky and the Theosophical movement has given surprising results, and so her status as a marginalized, much slandered figure has improved considerably. It has become apparent that somehow she was successful in being very influential, a surprisingly widespread influence, so much so that you could call it pervasive. It is surprisingly difficult to find a spiritual organization  that has not been influenced by Theosophy, in one way or another. The reason for this probably because that she presented spiritual ideas in a modern language, giving nominal possibilities for integrating theories of evolution, scientific processes, etc. in an increasingly global perspective. Moreover, at a time when people were searching for something new, she presented strikingly original ideas, within a holistic, systematic framework that probably has yet to be surpassed. 

 

On the other hand, Blavatsky's influence does not account for the entire alternative spirituality movement. Before Blavatsky, an alternative spirituality movement already existed since around 1850 (including alternative Christian movements), and needs to be studied more. Spiritualism had become a considerable movement. So an alternative spiritual movement was already well underway when she arrived on the scene.

 

I suppose the very pervasive nature of her influence makes it difficult to summarize. Moreover, her ideas were adapted, modified, improvised on in the typically individualistic ways of modernism, so that it is quite rare to see someone develop her specific ideas and philosophy explicitly and faithfully. It is doubtful that Blavatsky herself would recognize or agree with many contemporary neo-Theosophy or post-Theosophy currents, many that claim her as an inspiration. Sometimes the concepts are presented in a way diametrically opposed to what she originally explained. 

 

In certain cases, theosophical groups become problematic when they depart from the original program and absorb or get absorbed by the materialism, capitalism, consumerism, individualism, or the competitive, hedonistic aspects of modern society. Many of the the modern Mahatmas phenomena are more a case of spiritualist practices absorbing Theosophical ideas in a distorted way.  Below is a useful description of the fragmentation process, from a mainstream magazine:

'What we actually have is a highly derivative form of Theosophy— bits and pieces of what should really be termed neo-Theosophy, almost certainly lifted from sects that had themselves broken away from the larger Theosophical movement, such as the “I AM” Religious Activity in the 1930s and 1940s or the more recent Church Universal and Triumphant, and that have provided the Hatonn materials with a fragmentary and superficial Theosophical gloss.'

 

Generally speaking, true to the ‘salad bar’ approach  of the New Age movement, alternative spirituality groups tend to have an eclectic mix of influences, which I would break down into spiritualist (channeling, mediums), new thought (mind power, positive thinking), and theosophical (Eastern philosophies, comparative religion). One useful step in examining an alternative spirituality group would be to consider degrees of influence from those three currents. For example, one of William Pelley’s magazines (an influence on Guy and Edna Ballard's 'I AM' movement, a QAnon influence) has been described as being ‘in the center of the occult / New Thought / Theosophical mixture of the time’.

Hence, saying a given movement, such ‘I Am', or starseeds or traditionalism has Theosophical influences is not saying much, as virtually every spiritual movement, modern and traditional, has varying degrees of Theosophical influences. So I think that today, we’ve reached a point where it is necessary (and possible) to be more nuanced (this is occurring in academia to a certain extent, much less so in mainstream media, it seems). One needs to do the work and specifically trace the nature and extent of that influence, which is a difficult task because one has to have a good knowledge of the source of influence as well as the more recent manifestations. Before assuming there is a problematic theosophical influence, I think the primary blame should go to the person directly responsible for a specific movement's wrongdoings.

 

Looking again at William Pelley, although more research needs to be done, it seems readily apparent that  the radical right wing racist elements come from, besides Nazism directly, fundamentalist Christian sources and not from the theosophical elements.

 

Part 4

Blavatsky and contemporary politics 2/5 - Neo-theosophy

The second point I’d like to discuss is mainly for clarification purposes. I would like to suggest that there is a need to distinguish the 1875-1900 period as original theosophy and the 1901-1935 period as neo-theosophy. In academic studies, this is done to a certain extent, but not consistently. I don’t mean the term ‘neo-theosophy’ to be derogatory but simply to demarcate a period where the literature, which had a certain consistency, began to noticeably differ from the original doctrines. As many specifically neo-theosophical ideas from that later period get attributed to the original theosophy, more consistency in distinguishing the two forms could help to lessen the confusion. Moreover, I’ve noticed that when historians try to take on the whole early period of 1875-1935, they tend to have a lack of knowledge of one of the two periods (it's a very complex period in history), or run into semantic difficulties, and is therefore rarely successful. 

 

Briefly stated, I would describe neo-theosophy as a shift to a greater emphasis on modern, western, exoteric values (to the detriment of traditional, eastern, esoteric values). It emerged when, following a tendency begun by H. S. Olcott and A. P. Sinnett, Charles Webster Leadbeater (1854 –1934) began a close collaboration with Annie Besant (1847 – 1933), who was elected president of the Theosophical Society after Olcott's death in 1907, and released a controversial series of books which developped Theosophical principles in a direction noticeably different from Blavatskian theosophy, a kind of proto- New Age outlook with a greater emphasis on psychic powers, clairvoyance and past life exploration in such books as the Inner Life (1911), A Textbook of Theosophy (1912), and the Masters and the Path (1925). 

In 1910, Leadbeater contended that Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895 –1986) was to be the probable  “vehicle” for the new “world teacher”. After being groomed for such a position with the support of Annie Besant, Krishnamurti eventually left the Theosophical Society in 1930 and became a successful independent spiritual teacher. (James Santucci, Theosophy and Theosophical Societies, Theosophy Forward, 2013, pp 10-22).

Probably partly due to the intensely tumultuous period of the first two world wars, schisms within the society began to occur and various offshoots organizations were founded by former Theosophical members in the early twentieth century period, some important early ones being:

Max Heindl (1865 - 1919) who founded the Rosicrucian Society in 1912.

Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925) who founded the Anthroposophy group in 1913.

Alice Bailey (1880 –1949) who founded the Arcane school in 1920.

All three have a more or less pronounced Christian emphasis, an important point that will be further considered.  From there, further divisions and offshoots have resulted in a broad Theosophical current that have many common general points of agreement and many differences of points of detail. I think that it is safe to say that the neo-theosophical offshoots can be characterized by a narrowing of the original theosophical values, goals and free, open, universalist approach.

One could ask if Blavatsky is to be blamed for all the subsequent fragmentation. I would argue that she tried her best to prevent it. One can see in the Mahatma letters, in her correspondence, in the magazine she edited, that she was fighting distortions in the original teachings and tendencies of veering away from the original values, especially in her struggles with Olcott and Sinnett, two of her closest colleagues. Moreover, her writings often show that she was aware of the serious problems of corruption that any new spiritual movement faces, for example, the article ‘Pseudo-Theosophy’

Part 3

Blavatsky and contemporary politics 1/5 - History

Continuing from last month, I've broken down my op-ed comments on Theosophy's role in current politics into five parts: history, influence, neotheosophy, politics, and a defence, which will run this month. A final piece will be a comparison of Blavatsky and Guénon's views on the Kali Yuga, which seems to me to be a key distinction between theosophy and traditionalism.

 

When you see some dramatic current political event, the January 6 US election riots, with the QAnon Shaman connection with the Starseed movement, QAnon’s connection with the ‘IAm’ movement, Steve Bannon’s connection with traditionalism, and with the Russian-Ukraine war, Alexander Dugin’s connection with traditionalism, with a little inquiry, it becomes apparent that these movements origins were influenced by Theosophy to a certain extent. Does this cast a dark shadow on the already very challenged Theosophy ‘brand’? Should Theosophy be blamed? Should Blavatsky be held responsible? These are some basic questions that come to mind, which to address properly would require considerable historical research that is beyond the scope of this editorial. I will simply propose a few observations that strike me as relevant to the current state of the general perception of Theosophy, and historical awareness of H.P. Blavatsky’s influence in particular.

 

To begin, I'd like to suggest that since her theosophical ideas seem to have an importance in today's political landscape, then a comprehensive and accurate historical and intellectual study of her influence and ideas are necessary. And if this stark reality serves to further encourage the growing field of esoteric history, then I think that is good thing, because it could help to clear up the significant inaccuracies, confusion and misunderstandings that continue to be propagated about her.

 

History

 

Modernism  inherently gives little value to historical study other than for propaganda, that is to justify itself, to promote the superiority of modern values. Hence the twentieth century historical approach was to focus on rationalist materialism, often tacitly excluding all perspectives that do not agree with that viewpoint. What was perceived as an advance in objective rationalism, began to be perceived as biased, repressive and rigid as currents of post-modernism began to emerge, and so people started to become more interested in more spiritual, mystical, alternative aspects that were previously neglected and excluded. The historical study of esoteric currents began to emerge and has slowly grown and developed over the last four decades.

 

There is a slow awareness that these alternative esoteric currents might not be as marginal as mainstream institutions would like to believe. So to a certain extent, it would seem that the emergence of Steve Bannon, the QAnon movement, and traditionalist political currents have caught people off guard and left them scrambling to understand and analyze them.

 

There has been appreciable historical study of the Blavatskyan theosophy current, things have improved. Over the last forty years, every new decade has seen more accurate, detailed, insightful research. Still, there remains a sort of a niche mentality, so I think it would be useful to further integrate the research into mainstream history (although I’ve seen tentative efforts being made in that direction). Greater research budgets should allow for more meticulous, serious research. It is a field that shows promise and there have been some impressive studies and books.

 

Blavatsky and other theosophists had a distinct propensity to document their activities, believing that they would be historically important. Had this idea been incorrect, it may appear vain and obsessive, but the last twenty years has shown that to be, to a certain degree, correct. So that leaves a treasure trove of useful material for historical research, which has yet to be fully taken advantage of. Thankfully, IAPSOP has emerged as an outstanding resource. A problem in Blavatsky’s case is that her globe-trotting tendencies make it necessary to conduct research in the United States, India, England, and Russia at the very least.

 

Like many or even most academic fields today, thing are in a state of flux, and the field of esoteric studies is no different. It is something of a mixed bag, with a variety of approaches and varying levels of quality and accuracy. It is still a field working at finding a semantic approach that can make sense of an area of study that includes supernatural beliefs, practices, and phenomena. To briefly mention some problems observed, you have presentism – perceiving Blavatsky against today’s values, current New Age trends (often ignoring the stark realities of colonialism which she faced). The Negative tendency of perceiving alternative spirituality from a Marxist / Max Weber perspective,  presented as a cautionary warning, spiritual =irrational, deviant to the rational ideal of modernism. This favouring of social theory results in a tendency to limit engagement in the discussion of ideas and doctrines (although improving), hence I see a need for deeper engagement with specifics intellectual ideas of Blavatsky per se. There are also semantic issues of increasingly narrow specialization without a global perspective.

 

Moreover, there is the problem of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, judging the theosophical movement as a whole solely by the worst examples, giving disproportional emphasis on the extreme, excentric, dysfunctional manifestations, which are bound to occur in any movement that gains a certain prominence. Hence I suggest a consideration of Gershom Scholem’s notion of the distinction between healthy normative social standards in spiritual movements and pathological deviations, which  Scholem comments on in his writings on the 17th-century on Sabbatai Zvi and the religious-social movement of Sabbatianism. For example, frequent reference is made to ‘Blavatsky and her Ascended Masters’, even though the term Ascended Masters, although they may claim to be the same as in Blavatsky’s time, whatever they are, are noticeably different from the originals and people tend to incorrectly associate them directly with her, probably facetiously, for derogatory purposes.

 

Unfortunately, there has been considerably less efforts by esoteric organizations themselves to  make use of their rich archival repository and present some historical overviews of their own, which would conceivably offer a more spiritual outlook. The study of the history of esoteric tradition is an important aspect of theosophical perennialism, which french Mason Jean-Marie Ragon has demonstrated, as well as Blavatsky (notably in chapter 8,volume 2 of Isis Unveiled and her review article of A. E. Waite's 'The real history of the Rosicrucians'. ) 

 

PS-

 

“Disinformation studies” is an emerging multidisciplinary speciality that brings together psychologists, computer scientists, sociologists, engineers, philosophers, mathematicians, behavioral scientists, military scholars, historians, political scientists, linguists, and more.' Caroline Orr Bueno

https://twitter.com/RVAwonk/status/1634046553412304897

 

In terms of the need for inter-disciplinary studies, and what I've been writing about on the importance of esoteric studies in history and politics, see:

Egil Asprem Esoteric Knowledge, Alternative Spirituality, and Conspiracy Theories January 10, 2022

https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/news/knowledge-spirituality-conspiracy/2021/12/8

 

Part 2

Blavatsky’s Writings on Russia

Blavatsky’s Writings on Russia

Even though living a rather nomadic life, Blavatsky still maintained much contact with Russia, and often shared interesting news about Russia to english-speaking audiences. Below is a sampling that give an extra glimpse into the Russian character of her personality.

 

She was actually quite candid about her attitude to her natal country, stating in a newspaper interview:

"No, I am an American by adoption - I respect American religious freedom - but I am still a good Russian at heart. Only, there is too little freedom at home; that is why I do not go back. I have not been in Russia for many years; I would not care to give my friends and relations a chance of shutting me up in a convent for life on the plea that I was a victim of illusions. I like the Emperor personally, if only because of the long relations of my family with the Imperial house. We have always been loyal supporters of the throne. I see very little Russian society even at Nice, where I might see everybody. It is so unpleasant to find them wondering why you do not go to Church, and to the Greek Church."

 

The Making of a Global Community: Blavatsky’s Travelogues from 1879 to 1886

Marina Alexandrova Oct 8, 2021  

This paper presents the history of publication and analysis of Blavatsky’s three works written in Russian about India, The Mysterious Tribes of the Blue Mountains, Durbar of Lahore, and From the Caves and Jungles of Hindostan, all initially published in serialized form in the leading Russian periodicals and separate editions between 1879 and 1886.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoH0tAhPDGA

 

Liberation Theosophy: Discovering India and Orienting Russia between Velimir Khlebnikov and Helena Blavatsky
Anindita Banerjee PMLA , Volume 126 , Issue 3 , May 2011 , pp. 610 - 624

Why would Khlebnikov invoke Blavatsky, the founder of a spiritual movement called heosophy, in a meditation on worldly violence framed by the First World War and the impending October Revolution? And why would he single out India, geographically and historically distant from Russia’s upheavals in the twentieth century, as a locus for discovering Russian identity? Khlebnikov’s own account of a journey to India, composed simultaneously with A New Lesson about War, provides a tantalizingly complex answer to this enigma. 

https://www.academia.edu/2385054/Liberation_Theosophy_Discovering_India_and_Orienting_Russia_between_Velimir_Khlebnikov_and_Helena_Blavatsky

 

The Russian Investigation 

another disgrace for science.—the St. Petersburg

professors imitate those of Harvard and London. — A. N. Aksakoff’s noble protest.

[Spiritual Scientist, Boston, Vol. IV, April 27, 1876, pp. 85-7] Collected Writings,V.1, 204

Translation of a letter of protest against irregularities by the

commission appointed by the society of physical sciences of the St. Petersburg University, for the investigation of mediumistic manifestations. 

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v1/y1876_009.htm

 

A. N. Aksakov

“Psychophobia” in Russia

[Banner of Light, Boston, Vol. XXXIX, No. 5, April 29, 1876, p. 8] CW, V.1, 210

Comments and translation of protest by Alexander Mikhaylovich Butlerov regarding previous irregularities 

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v1/y1876_010.htm

The Russian Scientists

Excitement in St. Petersburg.—a protest by the highest nobility of the empire.—the severest rebuke a scientific body ever had.

[Banner of Light, Boston, Vol. XXXIX, June 24,1876, p. 8] CW, V.1, 215

 Another letter of protest on the high-profile Russian investigation with an impressive number of signatures. Blavatsky criticizes Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev 

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v1/y1876_014.htm

 

Turkish Barbarities

[The World, New York, August 13, 1877] CW, V.1, 255

Defends Russian against reports of war crimes in the Russo-Turkish war of 1877-1878. Received correspondence from Alexander Yulyevich de Witte (1846-1877) the second son of Yuliy Feodorovich de Witte and Katherine Andreyevna de Fadeyev, sister of H.P.B.’s mother. He was a younger brother of Serguey Yulyevich de Witte who became Prime Minister of Russia.

“I regard this war not as one of Christian against Muslim, but as one of humanity and civilization against barbarism.” 

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v1/y1877_009.htm 

 

The Jews in Russia

[New York World, Sept. 25th, 1877] CW, V.1, 262

Blavatsky writes to defend against news statements that Jews are oppressed in Russia.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v1/y1877_012.htm

 

The State of Russia (From a Correspondent)

[The Pioneer, Allâhâbâd, May 4, 1881] CW, V.3, 155

Dramatic, eloquent, insightful account of the assassination of Emperor Alexander II of Russia.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v3/y1881_048.htm

 

Alexander II

Persian Zoroastrianism and Russian Vandalism

[The Theosophist, Vol. I, No. 1, October, 1879, pp. 19-21] CW, V.2, 122

Blavatsky protests against Russian oil drilling near an ancient Zoroastrian temple: ''And now, hardly a year later, we find in the papers that Messrs. Kokoreff and Co., are busy erecting on the Fiery Field enormous buildings for the refining of petroleum! All the cells but the one occupied by the poor old hermit, half-ruined and dirty beyond all expression, are inhabited by the firm’s workmen; the altar over which blazed the sacred flame, is now piled high with rubbish, mortar and mud, and the flame itself turned off in another direction. The bells are now, during the periodical visits of a Russian priest, taken down and suspended in the porch of the superintendent’s house; heathen relics being as usual used—though abused—by the religion which supplants the previous worship.''

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v2/y1879_025.htm

 

War in Olympus

[The Theosophist, Vol. I, No. 2, November, 1879, pp. 40-42]

The Teutons and Slavs in the case under observation, are not fighting according to their nationality but conformably to their respective beliefs and unbeliefs. Having concluded, for the occasion, an offensive as well as a defensive alliance, regardless of race—they have broken up in two camps, one representing the spiritualists, and the other the skeptics. And now war to the knife is declared. Leading one party, are Professors Zöllner, Ulrici, and Fichte, Butleroff and Wagner, of the Leipzig, Halle and St. Petersburg Universities; the other follows Professors Wundt, Mendeleyeff, and a host of other German and Russian celebrities.

[H.P.B.’S Writings in Russian]

CW, V.1, 313

There are some Russian newspaper writings of Blavatsky that do not seem to have been located.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v1/y1878_010.htm

 

Russian Superstitions 

A Russian folk belief related by Evgeny Lvovich Markov

[The Theosophist. Vol. I, No. 12, September, 1880, pp. 308-309] CW, V.2, 444

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v2/y1880_054.htm

The Study of Russian by Indian Officers

[Bombay Gazette, Bombay, February 21, 1881] CW, V.3, 46

Likes the idea of Anglo-Indian-Russian cross-cultural language learning exchanges.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v3/y1881_012.htm

A Russian “Symposium”

[The Pioneer, Allahabad, March 1, 1881] CW, V.3, 75

Comments on Russian writers articles on Anglo-Indian/ Russian relations. ''We need hardly explain that, in giving an account of this controversy, we aim merely at showing on what inaccurate pictures of the whole situation the public opinion of Russia is nourished—not at reproducing views which have any substantial claims to attention.''

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v3/y1881_022.htm

 

What scientific Russia knows of Ceylon

[The Theosophist, Vol. V, No. 5 (53), February, 1884, p. 110] CW, V.6, 138 

Debunks reports that the Singhalese practice polyandry.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v6/y1884_003.htm

 

Are all Russian ladies Russian agents?

What Madame Blavatsky has to say

[Pall Mall Gazette, London, Vol. XLIX, January 3, 1889, p. 7] CW, V.10, 291  

A good example of all the truly amazing amount of rumours circulating about her, even in her own lifetime, to which she would frequently respond to. Blavatsky is portrayed in a novel, 'Miss Hildreth' by  Augusta de Grasse Stevens. Gives a hint as to the origin of the doubtful correspondence with 'Prince Dondoukoff-Korsakoff'. ''Prince Doudaroff Korsakoff stands probably as the cunning anagram of Prince Dondoukoff-Korsakoff? This gentleman has been a friend of my family and myself since 1846; yet beyond two or three letters exchanged, I have never corresponded with him. It was Mr. Primrose, Lord Lytton’s Secretary, who was the first to write to him, in order to sift to the bottom another mystery. The Anglo-Indian Mrs. Grundy had mistaken me for my ‘twin-brother’ apparently, and people wanted to know which of us was drowned in the washtub during our infancy—myself or that ‘twin-brother,’ as in the fancy of the immortal Mark Twain. Hence the correspondence for purposes of identification.''

V. S. Solovyov

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v10/y1889_004.htm

 

Neo-Buddhism

CW, V.12, 334 

Unpublished response to Vladimir Solovyov’s review of The Key to Theosophy , in Russkoe obozrenie, 1890, no. 8, pp. 881–886.

An example of a certain type of intellectual who refuses to engage with her writings per se, due to her reputation and the misconceptions regarding Theosophy. She does quite well in dealing with this and despite obvious struggles, succeeds in remaining fairly diplomatic. Not too sure how this even begins to be about the Sarva-darsana-Sangraha of  Mâdhavâchârya, but serves to show her capacity to go head-to-head with a leading Russian intellectual, defending the traditional six darshanas, schools of Hindu philosophy, which today are considered much more standard than the  Mâdhavâchârya listing.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v12/y1890_039.htm

 

Problems of life

from the diary of an old physician By N. I. Pirogoff (Translated from the Russian by H.P.B.)

[Lucifer, Vol. VII. December, 1890, and January and February,

1891; Vol. VIII, March, April, May, June, July, August, 1891;
Vol. IX, October, 1891.] CW, V.12, 403  

Interesting esoteric commentary on the mystical observations from a great Russian scientist's memoirs.

http://www.katinkahesselink.net/blavatsky/articles/v12/y1890_047.htm

Blavatsky and the Theosophical Movement in Russia & Ukraine

Blavatsky's place of birth, Now Blavatsky-House Museum

Note: As the current contexts have generated a lot of commentary, I overeestimated my capacity for concision. However, I do think I can wrap up the current round of posts with three more instalments in the coming month.

 

Somber message from Ukraine when the war broke out in March, I think they're doing better now: 'Blavatsky H.P. museum in Dnepropetrovsk in the south of Ukraine which is now a war zone. The museum is closed until further notice and the staff is trying to preserve it in the present time. But are also and especially busy saving their own lives.'

https://www.facebook.com/QuestTheosophicalJournal/posts/492831532305816

 

Blavatsky ‘The Sphinx’ & Spirituality in Ukraine

Interview by Colyn Boyce with Svitlana Gavrylenko, July 5, 2022

The first members of the Theosophical Society appeared in Ukraine in 1998, the first branch in 2007, the Regional Association was approved in 2013, and the status of the Section was assigned in 2018. There are eight branches in the nation – including in Kyiv (“Ankh”), Yalta (“Aletheiya”), Odessa (“Pearl Necklace”) Dnipro (“H.P.Blavatsky” ) and Kropyvnytskyi (“Laya”) in central Ukraine.

https://hermesrisen.wordpress.com/2022/05/07/blavatsky-the-sphinx-spirituality-in-the-ukraine-interview-by-colyn-boyce-with-svitlana-gavrylenko%ef%bf%bc/

 

Blavatsky Under the Tsars

Marina Alexandrova, April 23, 2021

Virtual Centre for Theosophical Studies Lecture

New research on Blavatsky's early Russian life from an intrepid Russian studies prof. who grew up near where Blavatsky used to live.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=watch_permalink&v=769336193564514

 

History of the Theosophical Society (Adyar) and the Theosophical movement in Russia 

Well done Power Point 2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2pvQfALa64  

 

Effects of Theosophy on Russian Cultural History

Björn Seidel-Dreffke 2021

New book shows how deep the research is getting.

Theosophy across Boundaries brings a global history approach to the study of esotericism, highlighting the important role of Theosophy in the general histories of religion, science, philosophy, art, and politics. The first half of the book consists of seven perspectives on the activities of the Theosophical Society in very different regional contexts, ranging from India, Vietnam, China, and Japan to Victorian Britain and Israel, shedding new light on the entanglement of "Western" and "Oriental" ideas around 1900. The second half explores specific cultural influences that Theosophy exerted in the spheres of literature, art, and politics, using case studies from Sri Lanka, Burma, India, Japan, Ireland, Germany, and Russia. The examples clearly show that Theosophy was part of a truly global movement, thus providing an outstanding example of the complex entanglements of the global religious history of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

https://sunypress.edu/Books/T/Theosophy-across-Boundaries

 

HPB in Today's Russia

Abbasova, Pyarvin. Quest 103.3 (Summer 2015): pg. 112-113.

Since 1992, interest in the work of Blavatsky has been constantly increasing. Many books, including her collected writings, talks, and articles, have been published and can be found in every bookstore that has an esoteric or spiritual shelf. Every year new editions and commentaries are being published. I did some research and found a Russian YouTube channel with videos and movies about HPB and lectures of Russian Theosophists; many groups and online communities in the social network VK (similar to Facebook) that have thousands of followers, with information and audiobooks posted on a daily and weekly basis; and Web sites where one can download and read books and articles for free. Practically all the Web sites of the different spiritual organizations have pages about Helena Petrovna or references to her work.

https://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/3618-hpb-in-today-s-russia

 

Exile and Utopia:

Nicholas Roerich's Shortcut to Promised Land

Natasha Lvovich The Montréal Review, January 2018

Good overview of Roerich's life

https://www.themontrealreview.com/2009/Exile-and-Utopia-Nicholas-Roerich-Shortcut-to-Promised-Land.php

 

Third Parties: Henry Wallace and the Progressive Party

Potus Geeks Sep. 9th, 2020

In 1934, when Roosevelt and Wallace had sent Nicholas Roerich and his son George to Central Asia to search for drought-resistant grasses to prevent another Dust Bowl, Roerich caused a stir by trying to bring about a revival of the legendary Buddhist kingdom of Shambhalla, variously located in Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, or Manchuria. 

https://potus-geeks.livejournal.com/1246106.html  

 

Fashionable Occultism

Maria, Carlson. "Fashionable Occultism: The Theosophical World of Silver Age Russia." Quest  99. 2 (Spring 2011): 50-57.

The more intellectually inclined Theosophists also belonged to these societies and participated in their discussions. The names of the leading Russian idealist philosophers (Berdiaev, Sergei Bulgakov, E.N. Trubetskoi, Sergei Frank, Vasily Rozanov, Aleksandr Meier, Dmitry Filosofov, and N. O. Lossky) frequently appeared in Vestnik Teosofii ("Herald of Theosophy"), the principal journal of the Russian Theosophists; their lectures and articles were regularly reported and reviewed in its pages. "Closely observing the religious seeking of our time, one cannot pass by Theosophy, because for certain strata of contemporary educated society Theosophy has made it easier to come to religion," Berdiaev pointed out (Berdiaev, 1).

https://www.theosophical.org/publications/quest-magazine/2301

 

The Occult Revival in Russia Today and Its Impact on Literature 

Birgit Menzel,  Harriman Review v16 no4-v17 no1 64-77 April 2009

flashes of the Occult in the Soviet Past The considerable impact of theosophy and other occult theories on Russian Symbolist literature and art and the fact that so many of Russia's intellectuals at some point were fascinated by theosophy, including later Marxists such as Anatoly Lunacharsky, Maxim Gorky and Sergei Eisenstein, has been the subject of numerous studies, in particular, Maria Carlson's brilliant study of theosophy's influence on high artistic culture, and more recently by Bogomolov, Obatnin and Stahl-Schwaetzer. 19

https://academiccommons.columbia.edu/doi/10.7916/d8-nwpb-1v16/download

 

Keller on Rosenthal, 'The Occult in Russian and Soviet Culture'

Bernice Glatzer Rosenthal, ed. Reviewer:Shoshana Keller 1998

Theosophy, Spiritualism, and kabbalistic studies (Judith Deutsch Kornblatt has a fine essay on Vladimir Soloviev's interest in the Jewish Kabbala and its impact on religious thinkers as diverse as Nikolai Berdiaev, Sergei Bulgakov, and Vasily Rozanov) all posit a superior, hidden knowledge that masters may reveal only to the elect, if the elect can prove their worthiness

https://networks.h-net.org/node/10000/reviews/10107/keller-rosenthal-occult-russian-and-soviet-culture

The New Age of Russia Occult and Esoteric Dimensions

Glatzer Rosenthal, Bernice (editor) 2012

Occult and esoteric ideas became deeply embedded in Russian culture long before the Bolshevik Revolution. After the Revolution, occult ideas were manifested in literature, the humanities and the sciences as well. Although the Soviet government discouraged and eventually prohibited metaphysical speculation, that same government used the Occult for its own purposes and even funded research on it. In Stalin's time, occultism disappeared from public view, but it revived clandestinely in the post-Stalin Thaw and became a truly popular phenomenon in post-Soviet Russia. From cosmism to shamanism, from space exploration to Kabbalah, from neo-paganism to science fiction, the field is wide. Everyone interested in the occult and esoteric will appreciate this book, because it documents their continued importance in Russia and raises new issues for research and discussion. 

https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/26681

 

Occult Russia Pagan, Esoteric, and Mystical Traditions 

Christopher McIntosh

New book due December 2022

https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Occult-Russia/Christopher-McIntosh/9781644114186