The Theosophical Movement
Does Not Need Whited
Sepulchres
Helena P. Blavatsky
Helena Blavatsky: a bust made by Alexey Leonov
“Sorry to
find that the Irishman
is ever
smothering the candidate to ∆.
(…....) Now
do not lose a friend & a true
one, you
infernal Irish goose of the age!”
(Helena P. Blavatsky to William Q. Judge)
A 2012 Editorial Note:
The following letter from H. P. B.
to W. Q. Judge is reproduced from the magazine “The Theosophical Forum”,
June 1933, pp. 299-301, where it was published under the title “Leaves of
Theosophical History”.
The original is held in the
Archives of The Theosophical Society, Point Loma/Pasadena.
The editors of “The
Theosophical Forum” report:
“…The letter is undated, but
in Judge’s own handwriting, written in pencil at the top of the first page, is
given the date ‘oct. 89’. Several names have been deleted, and in place of them
are used the following initials: S, T, F, R, B,
E, G, H, and L.”
In this letter,
once again one can see two of the main founders of the theosophical movement,
not as legendary fictionalized masks of would-be human perfection. The reader
here meets instead real people. He sees two brave and honest souls struggling
with all kinds of obstacles and difficulties, including their own personal
limitations, in their work for mankind.
Such a knowledge
of the human dimension in theosophical endeavor is an important step away from
adoration of personalities. Honest leaders have the duty to avoid being
personally adored, and to prevent adoration of any institution. The true
process of leadership is described in “Isis Unveiled”, where H.P.B. reproduces
these words ascribed to the Lord Buddha himself, in dialogue with King Prasenagit:
“Great king, I
do not teach the law to my pupils, telling them ‘go, ye saints, and before
the eyes of the Brahmans and householders perform, by means of your
supernatural powers, miracles greater than any man can perform’. I tell
them, when I teach them the law, ‘Live, ye saints, hiding your good works,
and showing your sins’.”[1]
Therefore there is no reason
for theosophical leaders to be hypocrites or pose as saints. They are not
supposed to act as the whited sepulchres whom Jesus denounces in those
authentically theosophical and “Blavatskian” lines which one can find in Matthew,
23:13-27.
This is why H.P.B. frankly
discusses Judge’s “Irish” temper and his tendency to create personal conflicts,
which she makes an effort to prevent and to avoid. She opens her valuable
letter saying that this sort of personal emotion is a significant obstacle for
Judge, as a candidate to initiation.
(Carlos Cardoso Aveline)
NOTE:
[1] “Isis
Unveiled”, H.P. Blavatsky, Theosophy Co., Los Angeles, Vol. I, p. 600.
Letters Between Blavatsky and Judge - 16
Helena P. Blavatsky
Bert [1] sails with Parker
tomorrow, by New York City.
My dear W. Q. J.
Sorry to find that the
Irishman is ever smothering the candidate to ∆. You are wrong & unjust to
Parker. He is an eccentric, a character jumped out of a novel by Dickens, yet
the most honest man in the world, too stupidly honest for this world. Not mean. He gives almost all he has; but
$4,000 he was going to give for the S. D. & the T. S. were borrowed from
him by a F. T . S. & an Esotericist
of Chicago (!!) whose name he will not divulge & when he had made some
40,000 dollars out of the 4, he never gave back Parker back a two penny dam;
Parker gave here, right & left, & is going to work for us. What he was told of you by one who hates you, he
does not believe in it now, for he believes in me, & I told him I knew you
better than any one of his acquaintances. Now he says he loves & respects you
& repeats it 20 times a day. Now do not lose a friend & a true one,
you infernal Irish goose of the age! I send Bert with him on a solemn mission
& Bert may stop with you for three months & more. Bert will explain
all. Parker is the oddest and dearest little crank that you can set your eyes
upon. He is the soul of honour,
Judge, & you will find it out. Believe me when I say this I speak on
authority; and he now believes you too, the same soul of honour; for I told him
that you were a great deal better than I am, or Olcott ever was, & such is
my honest opinion. As for temper, you are - what I just said - an Irish goose.
Business:
Accounts finished. I have paid
Bert his capital for S. D. and interest
on the 1,100 odd pounds; therefore the rest what comes is all mine. Please now
when you make accounts, send the money to
me in my name deducing [2] what
I owe you & Path for commission. I find that Arch took from you of my money
£65 - and that all the money got
from the “Key” & “Voice of Silence” - (which has paid itself & over
assuredly is sunk in the office Duke St. They are bankrupts, & Parker tries
to save us. I try to save Lucifer,
& want the money for the T. S. but I
must have it in my own hands. Bert
will tell you this & explain. Bert is no good for business & Arch,
worse than he is; that’s truth. Mrs. S
swears she loved & loves me the same. Swears on her God she never said an
evil word about me, & tried hard to know who told me, as she thought it was you. I swore you never
opened your mouth to me about her; never told
me anything (& so you have not told
me orally), but said to her that I had received letters to that effect
years ago from America & so I have. Well, never mind her; better half a friend than a full enemy. L
is very shakky. I lent him 3 pounds
the day he arrived penniless, and took him to live with us for a month. Parker
gave him 5 pounds, & he borrowed from everyone. Well he is out of the
house. Is it true that he is Mrs. T’s nephew? He says so. F? Let him go to the devil & G
along with him, if he believes [3] in
himself so much. My answer to his printed manifesto
the copy of which I sent you will show you that I tell him plainly that it is
all Pledge Fever & personality on
his part. - Self-worship combating
hero-worship for somebody else. He is an
honest & sincere man, however, and I repeat so again. But he cannot believe
in R’s guilt & B is behind his back. What do I mean by your
playing into H’s and E’s hands? What I say. E will give
half his wife’s fortune to crush you, myself & Society. He tries to set us
two at logger heads as Mrs. Ver Plank truly remarks. Let us defeat them (for H
is E’s creature) by remaining
as united as the five fingers on one hand. This is what I mean:
Now
I ask you one thing. Can’t you take back poor George Cheiney who is here, and
readmit him into the T. S.? It is this infernal E who pitched him out.
Please do, if you can. He is a magnificent orator & I want him here in the
“Blavatsky Lodge” but unless you take him back I cannot make him a member of
the British Section or the Blavatsky Lodge, or can I?
And
now my old comrade & friend, be of good cheer. I’ll do the work myself now.
You reproach me with having done this & that sending telegrams &
letters, outside of you & the
devil a bit I knew that I had to do this! Now be so kind as to write to me
plainly (so that I could read) what you expect me to do, & what I must not do. And I give my word that I shall follow your instructions. Let us
understand each other, both of us, mutually. But till now no one ever said to
me a word about your asking to do this or that. Write to me direct & I will do it. But if you write it to the
Countess or Arch or Bert - they all forget.
Goodbye
my Irish crocodile; & may 
[4] protect you. Yours ever
[4] protect you. Yours ever
H P B.
NOTES:
[1] Bertram Keightley. (CCA)
[2] “Deducing”; “The Theosophical
Forum” has it “deduing”. We have corrected the misspelling. (CCA)
[3] The editors of “Theosophical Forum” report that “following this, on the top of the second
page of the second sheet of the letter, written upside down”, are the two following
sentences: “Master’s last letter made me
very miserable & I am hardly getting over it. Damn, my weakness for the
fools!” The present letter by HPB is
dated October 1889. The letter of reproof from the Master to her is discussed
in depth in one of her texts addressed to her esoteric students. See “Blavatsky Collected Writings”, TPH,
Volume XII, pp. 582-585. (CCA)
[4] In such a context, the triangle formed by three dots
stands as a symbol for a Master of the Wisdom, or a high Initiate. (CCA)
000
On the role of the esoteric movement in the
ethical awakening of mankind during the 21st century, see the book “The Fire and Light of Theosophical Literature”, by
Carlos Cardoso Aveline.
Published in
2013 by The Aquarian Theosophist,
the volume has 255 pages and can be obtained through Amazon Books.
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