Theosophical University Press Online Edition H. P. Blavatsky And The Theosophical Movement A Brief Historical Sketch Charles J. Ryan Second and Revised Edition edited by Grace F. Knoche First Edition copyright © 1937; Second and Revised Edition copyright © 1975 by Theosophical University Press (print version also available). Electronic version ISBN 1-55700-090-5. All rights reserved. This edition may be downloaded for off-line viewing without charge. No part of this publication may be reproduced for commercial or other use in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without permission of Theosophical University Press. For ease of searching, no diacritical marks appear in this electronic version of the text. Contents Prefatory Note Foreword Chapter 1: Introductory Chapter 2: Helena Petrovna Blavatsky Chapter 3: Training in Chelaship Chapter 4: From Apprenticeship to Duty Chapter 5: Work Begun in America Chapter 6: Foundation of The Theosophical Society Chapter 7: "Isis Unveiled" Chapter 8: Early Days in India Chapter 9: Development of the Indian Work Chapter 10: Work in India and Ceylon Chapter 11: The Second Septenary Cycle of The Theosophical Society Chapter 12: Tour in Europe in 1884 Chapter 13: The Coulomb Conspiracy Against Theosophy Chapter 14: Aftereffects of the Conspiracy Chapter 15: T. Subba Row and Brahmanism Chapter 16: H. P. Blavatsky in Europe Chapter 17: H. P. Blavatsky Organizes New Work, Exoteric and Esoteric Chapter 18: Revival of the Work in America Chapter 19: The Closing Years of H. P. Blavatsky's Life Chapter 20: Her Books Chapter 21: "Keep the Link Unbroken" Chapter 22: The Crisis of 1894-5 Chapter 23: Carrying the Movement Over into the New Century Chronology Bibliography LINKS TO OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS H. P. Blavatsky, 1875, Ithaca, N.Y. Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, c. 1877, New York Seal of H. P. Blavatsky Seal of The Theosophical Society Ninth Anniversary of The Theosophical Society, Adyar, Madras, December 27-29, 1884 H.P.B. at "Maycot," Upper Norwood, London, 1887 H. P. Blavatsky and H. S. Olcott, London, 1888 William Q. Judge New Year Card from H.P.B. to Dublin Lodge European T.S. Headquarters, 19 Avenue Road, London T.S. Headquarters, Adyar, Madras, 1887 William Q. Judge and Henry S. Olcott, 1891 Prefactory Note to the Second and Revised Edition By Grace F. Knoche "Time discovers truth," wrote Seneca as the Graeco-Roman influence, spiritual and political, was ebbing under the influx of the new cycle of thought taking hold. Who and what H. P. Blavatsky was and the purport of her teaching have been the earnest concern of thinkers and writers for a hundred years now, and while the public in general comprehends neither the fullness nor the majesty of her sacrifice, time is her advocate. To attempt to chronicle the life story of H.P.B. and of the Society she founded in 1875 demands a rare combination of qualities: perception of values, devotion to the theosophic ideals, a sense of history and, above all, an identification with the ageless purpose behind the sending of a messenger. For this is just what H.P.B. was, the sower of the messianic seed for the coming age (the Aquarian) and the restorer of confidence in the validity of the Way. Charles J. Ryan's H. P. Blavatsky and the Theosophical Movement makes no pretense to being a definitive biography of H. P. Blavatsky — much less of H.P.B. — or of the movement she inspired. Nonetheless, it is a product of exhaustive research into the early history and documents of the Society, hostile and friendly, so that the end result is a faithful portrait of the Founder and her life work. The narrative is disarming in its simplicity, but one soon becomes aware of the author's rich reserve of knowledge and grasp of essentials. Yet why reissue a book, however authentic, that was written back in 1937, now that fuller archival and biographic material is to hand? Data alone do not suffice. The history of any movement, especially one of spiritual origin, is best authored by a protagonist, by one who is convinced of the worthiness of his theme. Unless the writer himself has profoundly experienced the reality of its inner purpose, how can he render a verdict that will pass the test of time? Not only did Charles J. Ryan have the advantage of having been deeply committed since youth to the cause of human betterment, but he likewise lived close to the flame; he himself never met Madame Blavatsky, but he had as life-long friends and associates some of her pupils who carried with them until their death the atmosphere of their teacher's heroic dedication. A near eyewitness, and one who during the stormy years of the '90s staunchly defended the principles for which she had given her life, may have something to offer that later historians cannot so easily provide, however much they may benefit from the perspective of years. A native of Halifax, England, Charles James was born on August 31, 1865, to an English mother from Manchester and an Irish father, descended from the Ryans of Idrone, Tipperary. An artist by profession, he served as principal of the government School of Art in Ventnor, Isle of Wight, succeeding to the post after the death of his father, also an artist, with whom he exhibited at the Royal Academy in London. But C.J.R. was more than an artist and headmaster. A wide reader with an insatiable curiosity, there was no subject in astronomy, archaeology, philosophy or the arts to which he was a stranger. When rather suddenly he was called to California in 1900, to help with Katherine Tingley's new school just opened at the Point Loma theosophical headquarters, his colleagues were at a loss how to do honor to this quiet, self- effacing yet industrious gentleman who not only had exercised a power for good on the several institutions which he had served, but had touched each of their lives in a most intimate way. Professor Ryan had joined the theosophic scene several years earlier, in January 1894, when the Society was in the throes of controversy and divided loyalties. He himself had been reared in the rationalistic Free-thought atmosphere of the day when anything approaching dogma or authoritarianism in religious matters was suspect. His first exposure to theosophy, he tells us, was "somewhat unpromising," this being the spate of articles that appeared in the British press after H.P.B.'s death in 1891, most of them uncomplimentary, but he had been repelled by the prejudice and ignorance of the "self-styled judges" of the Society for Psychical Research. When later he read A. P. Sinnett's books, he "found his sincerity impressive"; he was not averse to believing there were great teachers who possessed "a more profound knowledge of spiritual and even physico-intellectual man than our modern psychologists, anatomists or theologians." Still, he held back, until one day he met a devoted pupil and friend of H.P.B., a member of the London headquarters staff. "I immediately joined the Theosophical Society — the wisest act of my life" — and helped found the Portsmouth Lodge. In the fateful division of the Parent Society in April 1895, he chose to support William Q. Judge — a decision that was personally painful to him, for it had been Annie Besant's conversion from rank materialism to theosophy that had strongly affected him. For fifty-five years, Charles J. Ryan gave unqualified devotion to Masters' work, and from 1900 until his death in Covina on December 24, 1949, contributed his remarkable literary and scientific talents to the theosophical world. The careful student will be grateful for the inclusion in this second and revised edition of precise references to quotations cited in the text where these were lacking, and for the correction and clarification of a considerable number of minor but significant points of fact. For these we are indebted, first to the author whose personal copy turned over by him to Arthur Conger in 1946 is marked throughout with his editorial changes, omissions and additions; second, to those who worked with me in preparing this edition; and third, to Kirby Van Mater, archivist, for his tireless labor in searching out obscure sources of historic data in the early letters, pamphlets, and original documents preserved in the Archives of the Theosophical Society (Pasadena) — sources which were not readily available to the author at the time of writing. Moreover, Professor Ryan had extended his chronological listing of developments up to 1946, but there seems no call to continue the record beyond that year, over and above the notation (in square brackets) of the sequential changes in administrative responsibility respectively of the two main branches of the movement. Also included are a new bibliography and enlarged index. Assuredly, the author has accomplished his objective: to give a concise outline of theosophic history and, more importantly, to present H. P. Blavatsky "in such a true light that the reader will see that it was impossible for such a being — the real H.P.B. — to be anything but genuine." GRACE F. KNOCHE Pasadena, California June 21, 1975 Foreword to the First Edition By Charles J. Ryan Running through the record of the Theosophical Society from its inception to the present day is one unbroken line of underlying purpose to provide a rational solution for the great problems which face humanity. From the first the Society stated that its main object was to disseminate Ideas which would, if put into practice, change the hearts and minds of men to better and higher things.