The Theosophist

THE THEOSOPHIST VOL. 134 NO. 2 NOVEMBER 2012 CONTENTS On the Watch-Tower 3 Radha Burnier Mind Management 7 V. V. Chalam The Dharma or the True Work of Man 12 Mary Anderson Science: Modern and Occult — I 20 Pablo Sender True Social Service 28 D. P. Sabnis Universal Brotherhood to Save the Earth 30 S. K. Nanda Nicholas Roerich — Russian, Artist, Genius 33 A. E. Adair Theosophical Work around the World 36 International Directory 40 Editor: Mrs Radha Burnier NOTE: Articles for publication in The Theosophist should be sent to the Editorial Office. Cover: Statues of the Founders, Headquarters Hall, Adyar — Prof. C. A. Shinde Official organ of the President, founded by H. P. Blavatsky, 1879. The Theosophical Society is responsible only for official notices appearing in this magazine. 1 THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY Founded 17 November 1875 President: Mrs Radha Burnier Vice-President: Mr M. P. Singhal Secretary: Mrs Kusum Satapathy Treasurer: Mr T. S. Jambunathan Headquarters: ADYAR, CHENNAI (MADRAS) 600 020, INDIA Secretary: secy.hq@ts-adyar.org Treasury: ts_treasury@sify.com Adyar Library and Research Centre: alrc.hq@ts-adyar.org Theosophical Publishing House: tphindia@gmail.com & tphindia@adyarbooks.com Fax: (+91-44) 2490-1399 Editorial Office: editorialoffice@gmail.com Website: http://www.ts-adyar.org The Theosophical Society is composed of students, belonging to any religion in the world or to none, who are united by their approval of the Society’s Objects, by their wish to remove religious antagonisms and to draw together men of goodwill, whatsoever their religious opinions, and by their desire to study religious truths and to share the results of their studies with others. Their bond of union is not the profession of a common belief, but a common search and aspiration for Truth. They hold that Truth should be sought by study, by reflection, by purity of life, by devotion to high ideals, and they regard Truth as a prize to be striven for, not as a dogma to be imposed by authority. They consider that belief should be the result of individual study or intuition, and not its antecedent, and should rest on knowledge, not on assertion. They extend tolerance to all, even to the intolerant, not as a privilege they bestow but as a duty they perform, and they seek to remove ignorance, not punish it. They see every religion as an expression of the Divine Wisdom and prefer its study to its condemnation, and its practice to proselytism. Peace is their watchword, as Truth is their aim. Theosophy is the body of truths which forms the basis of all religions, and which cannot be claimed as the exclusive possession of any. It offers a philosophy which renders life intelligible, and which demonstrates the justice and the love which guide its evolution. It puts death in its rightful place, as a recurring incident in an endless life, opening the gateway to a fuller and more radiant existence. It restores to the world the Science of the Spirit, teaching man to know the Spirit as himself and the mind and body as his servants. It illuminates the scriptures and doctrines of religions by unveiling their hidden meanings, and thus justifying them at the bar of intelligence, as they are ever justified in the eyes of intuition. Members of the Theosophical Society study these truths, and theosophists endeavour to live them. Everyone willing to study, to be tolerant, to aim high, and to work perseveringly, is welcomed as a member, and it rests with the member to become a true theosophist. 2 On the Watch-Tower On the Watch-Tower RADHA BURNIER Mâyâ Everywhere More than anything else beauty is The spider’s web has a pattern to its hidden significance, a mysterious thing in construction but not a given shape. It Nature which adorns it. Thomas à Kempis attracts most people because it is not fixed. says: ‘There is no creature so small and We have seen that beauty is not a quality abject that it represents not the goodness which belongs to any particular mate- of God’, because beauty is of the very rial, design, function, and so forth. If one nature of life; it inheres in the source of looks carefully, without previous ideas life. This is so, whether a person denies it interfering, beauty is everywhere, in or not. everything. Man can interfere and make Human beings are part of this world. something beautiful for his own eyes. But But mostly they do not believe in this; to this is not actually the beautiful miracle them the world includes only what they of loveliness that we see if sight is pure. discover, what they create — the ugliness Every insect, mineral, plant, the sky and which one can see everywhere, that man waters are such miracles of loveliness. takes a hand in creating. The urbanization This is made obvious in the spider’s web, of the world does not help to get nearer to which has been used to demonstrate all knowing the reality. Nature is of course of nature, including human beings. They far away because we are all the time far are part of one great miracle. Beauty in away in the atmosphere of the city. The shapes, in colours, sound, and everything population of the world by human beings, else that is seen or known through the with its poverty, ignorance, conditioning senses, are part of the one Beauty. Beauty and self-centredness is also the ‘reality’ for is also in function, in mutual relationships. keeping those who are ambitious and It comes through in growth, birth and greedy in the struggle, with the attendant death. J. Krishnamurti had, as usual, a cruelty, anxiety, etc., which the game special way of pointing this out: played according to artificial rules breeds. You saw a dead leaf, yellow and bright The more intensely the game is played, red, a leaf from autumn. How beautiful the less a person sees the ugliness of the leaf was, so simple in its depth, so society, as well as the beauty in creation. lively, full of the beauty and vitality of The loveliness of forest and lake, insect the whole tree and the summer. and birds is far from such persons because November 2012 3 The Theosophist of their own false pursuits and aims. Their written about evolution in which he points own occupation and ideas mislead their out that evolution is one process although minds just as heavy clouds shut out and many species are involved in it. But they block the sunshine. How do we penetrate all bring about growth which takes shape and rise above the world of mâyâ? as we proceed from vegetable to animal The very word mâyâ, which is often and then to human existence. We do not translated as ‘illusion’, makes us think of know that the animals we despise and what is sane and true. This is perhaps the kill, the creatures we ill treat, are all part reason why man has to come to the point of one process, which includes our own of questioning whatever he sees. What is evolution. If we understood this, the world true? It means that we have to see what is would be different. We would then see logical. The truth is what actually exists, that the creatures we think of as lower or not what a thousand people, or even ten despicable are not really like that. In fact, thousand, think of as non-existent. So, that our treatment makes a lot of difference to which is sane is what we have to discover, their growth as it does to ours. even though everything that we do may In our tradition the best people know appear to be part of an existent world. that this is so and therefore their treatment But it is all mâyâ, temporarily part of a of all that we think is lower has a very passing world. precious and beautiful role to play. Some of our tradition points to this. I was told Never do Harm when visiting Central India that there was We are usually interested in our own a hermit who felt at home passing through images, which we think represent the forests and lonely places. Some people he truth, things as they are. We can see that was acquainted with knew him because people are in varying circumstances, his behaviour elicited great respect. He and each one thinks that he sees the truth. would pass through the jungles in his We are so much used to this that we do area without fear or the feeling that not regard it as strange at all. We think it wild creatures could attack him. He slept is normal. in caves, sometimes very near what are Nature’s plans may be very different known as dangerous animals and no- from what man thinks. We human beings thing happened to him. He knew, and the live in a state of illusion (mâyâ), which animals round about, dangerous or we imagine is the same as reality, but it is otherwise, also knew he was one of them. very different. Animals for instance do They would not think of hurting him what nature tells them to, otherwise they because he was a holy man. keep quiet. But when man takes a hand in It is also said that Razia, a Muslim shaping the world as a whole, he makes saint, sat in lonely places, and animals and the world of animal life into what it is not. other creatures liked to be near her for A scientist in Oxford University has their own reasons.

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