T. FISHER UNWIN LTD
LONDON : ADELPHI TERRACE
First published in 1925
—•— v —•—
The letters here
presented to the reader, written by the Founder of the Theosophical Society
between the years 1880-1888, are intended to form a companion volume to the
recently published Mahatma
Letters,
and should be read in conjunction with that work. They have been
transcribed direct from the originals and without omission except for the
occasional deletion of a name where-ever for obvious reasons it was absolutely
necessary to do so. Contrary to the method employed in
The Mahatma Letters,
the
compiler has permitted himself to correct obvious errors of spelling and
punctuation, as these were too numerous to ignore, and no useful purpose could
be served by leaving them unedited. Here and there in the text a word appears in
square brackets. This always indicates that the word is either superfluous, or
has been added by the compiler to make the sentence comprehensible. It should be
understood that all footnotes are part of the original letters, unless signed
“Ed.,” in which case they
have been added by the compiler. With these necessary exceptions the letters are
presented to the reader, as already stated, unaltered.
In Section I are to be found exclusively the Letters of Madame Blavatsky arranged as far as possible in chronological order.
Section II contains all the Miscellaneous Letters of interest left by Mr. Sinnett, arranged under the names of the different writers in numbered sub-sections. Some of these have additional value owing to the marginal comments by the Mahatmas M. and K. H.
In Sub-section VIII are included some short notes from M. and K. H. which were overlooked in preparing The Mahatma Letters. They are now published not so much for their intrinsic value, but because in his Introduction to that volume the compiler stated that the whole of the Mahatma Letters left by Mr. Sinnett were then published, and his statement, inaccurate to this extent is hereby made good.
The Appendixes contain: I. An Article by Eliphas Levi on “Death,” which is of particular value because it has comments in Master K. H.’s writing in the margin of the printed page of the magazine in which it originally appeared.
—•—
vi THE
LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY
—•—
II. Cosmological Notes from Mr. Sinnett’s MS. Book. One version of these notes which does not agree exactly with the MS. book from which his copies were presumably drawn, has already been published by Mr. Jinarajadasa. Although the differences may possibly not be regarded as serious, it is thought that students would be glad to have the opportunity of reading them just as they were left by Mr. Sinnett, and for that reason they are included in the present volume. The material contained in the two volumes was left all together in one box by Mr. Sinnett, and the whole of its contents are now in print with the exception of some miscellaneous correspondence by various writers which is not of sufficient interest to warrant publication. There must be, however, scattered about the world a number of H.P.B.’s letters in the keeping of different people, and it is greatly to be hoped that in the interest of the Movement steps will be taken to publish them.
The compiler takes this opportunity of acknowledging his indebtedness to several friends for painstaking and careful work in checking the originals with the printed proofs, and also for the compilation of the Index.
A. T. B.
—•— vii —•—
Of all the problems
which confront the student of Theosophy, there is none more vital in the present
day than a thorough grasp and correct perspective not only of the personal
character of the Founder of the Theosophical Society, but of the nature of the
work she did and the true relationship it bears to the whole fabric of the
Theosophical Movement. It is now beginning to be recognised that her writings
contain the key to
the profoundest mysteries of Man and the Universe, and those who opposed her,
finding themselves unable to disprove the value and truth of her philosophy,
sought by means of personal slander and vilification to prejudice public
opinion, and thus divert attention from the treasure of knowledge which she was
the means of giving to the world, and which, if impartially considered on its
merits, must have carried with it the
conviction of the integrity of the writer. In
The Secret Doctrine
Mme. Blavatsky quoted the words of Gamaliel as being particularly applicable to
her own work: “If this doctrine is false it will perish of itself, but if true
then it cannot be destroyed.” Just as her work has stood the test of time and
public criticism, so will these two volumes provide the means for the
vindication of her personal character. The biassed and untrustworthy nature of
the Hodgson Report of the Society of Psychical Research, which has provided the
basis for so much ignorant and malicious criticism even down
to the present day, is clearly revealed in these pages. Much fresh light is also
thrown on the forgeries known as the Coulomb Letters, and also of her relation
with the notorious Solovioff, who, in his rage and resentment at being refused
the privilege of chelaship, did so much to injure her reputation. It would
require a volume to deal adequately with all the evidence on these important
questions; the reader is therefore left to form his own conclusions as to
whether the heroic figure which stands out so vividly in these pages was the
liar, the fraud, and worse than dishonest medium which the Society of Psychical
Research and the Spiritualists generally would have us believe, or whether she
was what she claimed to be—no medium indeed, but the conscious Agent of the
Masters who sent her forth, performing her prodigious task under conditions
which
—•— viii THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
would make the bravest halt; an occultist pledged to silence as to the true reasons for most of her actions, ever fearful of giving out too much, but yet through it all labouring so fiercely and whole-heartedly for the sake of the few who were entitled to her Master’s thanks. She wrote herself in Letter No. XLV—“Those who see no discrepancy in the idea of filthy lying and fraud even for the good of the Cause—being associated with work done for the Masters—are congenital Jesuits . . . or natural born fools. Had I been guilty once only—of a deliberately, purposely concocted fraud, especially when those deceived were my best, my truest friends, no ‘love’ for such one as I! At best, pity or eternal contempt. Pity if proved I was an irresponsible lunatic, a hallucinated medium, made to trick by my ‘guides’ whom I was representing as Mahatmas; contempt—if a conscious fraud.” Let those who are so limited as to believe that the Masters and their teaching are the invention of H. P. Blavatsky read the account of her journey into the wilds of Sikkim, in which she describes her meeting in propria persona with the Mahatmas M. and K. H. The real nature of these Adepts as living men, or, as H. P. B. called them, “superior mortals, not ignorant flapdoodle gods,” is here placed beyond the realm of speculation.
There is hardly one of these pages that does not throw some unexpected light on the mysteries of the relationship between Adept and chela, and it is thus possible to gain some comprehension of the life of those who, while living in the world, serve the purposes of the Great Lodge of Adepts whose headquarters are beyond the Himalayas of Northern India. Wherever those chelas may be, their hearts will give a warmer and quicker throb as they read the story of H. P. B.’s intimate association with her teachers. As they read further of the trials and torments which inevitably befell those other chelas of forty years ago, it is not they who will be tempted to condemn those who fell from their high estate, dragged into the mire by one or other of the weaknesses of human nature. But while there should be nothing but pity and compassion for the failures, let no student of the Sacred Science fall into the blunder of seeking in the name of “Brotherhood” to justify their indulgences, either ethically or morally.
There are several references to the writing of The Secret Doctrine which show to how great an extent the Masters were themselves responsible for that work. That is why the teaching of H. P. B. “remains for us the test and criterion of Theosophy,” by which all other teaching on the subject must be judged. After all, if the Masters do not know what Theosophy is, no one does, because in its essence, purity and completeness it is alone contained in the secret teaching of which the Guardians are the
Masters Themselves. That teaching, as stated by H. P. B., “is not the fancy of one or several isolated individuals, but the fruit of the work of thousands of generations of Adept Seers,” I through whom it was handed down from the first Divine Instructors of our Humanity. It is the substratum and basis of all the world-religions and philosophies, but its doctrines are the exclusive possession of none of them. It was the mission of Madame Blavatsky, under the instructions of those Adepts, to give to the world selected portions of that archaic teaching. It should be remembered that an Adept—a Master, is one who has achieved immortality, and therefore has the power to perceive truth as it is and at will to reflect it without distortion. It is because no one of lesser degree can claim that power always and with certainty that Their testimony must be regarded as the highest authority on all matters of occult doctrine and practice. And here it must be stated unequivocally that from the point of view of the “original programme” of the Society, no theosophical association has any raison d’etre if it does not remain true to the Masters and their teaching. There are some who seem to believe that it is possible to be faithful to the Masters while denying even the theoretical truth of their teaching. This is where the responsibility of the old Theosophical Society is so grave. In his Introduction to The Mahatma Letters the writer had occasion to point out in what important particulars that Society showed by its actions a serious divergence from the spirit and letter of the original teaching. That volume proves beyond question that H. P. B.’s writings are absolutely consistent with the Masters’ teachings, and in nothing is this more clearly discernible than in her exposition of the doctrines relating to the Life after Death. It is not the least serious aspect of the situation that the Theosophical Society bases its propaganda on this important subject not, as the public has a right to expect, on the message of H. P. B. and the Masters, but on the personal investigation of later students, whose views, for example, on the post-mortem survival of personal consciousness are so different as to represent the direct antithesis of the original teaching.
No serious students of H. P. B. will deny the force or the truth of these arguments, but there are many such who conceive it to be their duty to remain in the old Theosophical Society and at the same time to stand by the original teaching. They are at once faced with certain difficulties which have to be experienced to be understood, but which, fortunately, the constitution of the Society does not make it impossible to solve. Let the reader turn to Letter
I “That
is to say, men who have perfected their physical, mental, psychic. and spiritual
organisations to the utmost possible degree.”
—•— x THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
No. C in this volume, and he will there see how H. P. B. was faced with a very similar situation and of the measures she recommended to deal with it. She lays stress on the fact that the Society was founded as a Universal Brotherhood, in which no one has the right to force his own views on another, but each must be allowed free expression of opinion. She defines what a nucleus of Brotherhood is by quoting Master K. H. almost word for word: “A group or branch, however small, cannot be a theosophical society unless the members in it are magnetically bound to each other by the same way of thinking, at least in some one direction.” She urges that those who intend at all costs to remain true to the original programme of the Society—i.e. to the Masters and their teaching—should found Lodges devoted to that purpose alone. Exactly the same should be done in our own day as a solution of present difficulties.
Therefore, all the world over, let the lovers of the Wisdom of H. P. B. unite, whether they be in or out of the Theosophical Society; let them found Lodges which shall be places apart, sanctified by devotion to the Truth and the Cause of the Brotherhood of Humanity, while seeking their knowledge from her writings, I which contain all and far more than is necessary for the instruction of Theosophists, until the promised hour strikes at the beginning of the last quarter of this century, when another Messenger from the Great Lodge may be expected to appear and carry forward the work of H. P. Blavatsky to the next stage of unfolding.
A. TREVOR BARKER.
LONDON,
December,
1924.
I That is to say, The Secret Doctrine, Isis Unveiled, The Key to Theosophy, The Voice of the Silence, and her numerous magazine articles in Lucifer and The Theosophist; care should be taken to study these works wherever possible in the original editions or exact reprints of them—the later Revised Editions have been considerably altered and, in the opinion of many students, quite unwarrantably.
—•— xi CONTENTS—•—
COMPILER’S PREFACE . . . v
INTRODUCTION. . . . vii
LETTERS No I—CXX . . . 3-261
M.’s Instructions to Sinnett . . . 5
H. P. B.’s Attitude to K. H. . . . 7
K. H.’s Correspondence . . . 9
The Lamas of Toling . . . . 11
M.’s Methods with H. P. B.. . . 13
A Marriage is arranged . . . 15
“Confederate” Damodar . . . 17
Prestige of the Great Brotherhood . . . 19
The stuff of which Chelas are made . . . 21
Stainton Moses and Imperator . . . 23
The Septenary Term of Trial . . . 25
K. H.’s Portrait . . . 27
H. P. B. curses her Fate . . . 29
Hume’s Criticisms of H. P. B. . . . 31
The T.S. the Hope of Mankind . . . 33
H. P. B. is made to apologise . . . 35
M. is angry with Hume . . . 37
H. P. B. visits M. and K. H. . . . 39
Mr. Hume must ride his own Donkey . . . 41
An Infernal Power . . . 43
H. P. B. in “Society” . . . 45
Master K. H. . . . 47
The Power of the Chohan . . . 49
H. P. B. blames herself . . . 51
H. P. B. on the “ Phoenix” Venture . . . 53
Defence .of Sterling Qualities . . . 55
Col. Olcott’s Difficulties . . . 57
True Theosophists wanted . . . 59
In Praise of Col. Olcott . . . 61
The Chohan’s Karma . . . . 63
H. P. B. on Injustice . . . . 65
Comments on a Letter from A. K. . . . 69
M. and K. H. intervene . . . 71
—•— xii THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
LETTERS No. I—CXX—continued
Strange Happenings . . . 73
The Hodgson Investigations . . . 75
H. P. B. arrives in France . . . 77
The Masters and Their Teachings . . . 79
Anna Kingsford and K. H . . . 81
Russian Aristocrats and H. P. B . . . 83
Tibetan Chelas . . . 85
The Work of Mohini . . . 87
The Secret Doctrine and Isis Unveiled . . . 89
Mrs. Holloway and K. H . . . 91
Mohini and the Writing of” Man” . . . 93
Subba Row lies about H. P. B . . . 95
The Crime of divulging Sacred Things . . . 97
The Coulomb Letters . . . 99
The Karma of an Occultist . . . l01
H. P. B.’s Martyrdom . . . 103
An Hour of Revelation . . . 105
On Books and Characters . . . 107
False Reasoning and Bigotry of S.P.R . . . 109
The Love of the Master . . . 111
Solovioff resigns from S.P.R . . . 113
The Forger Coulomb . . . 115
Solovioff protests to S.P.R . . . II7
“Guilty in One—Guilty in All” . . . 119
Dr. F. Hartmann . . . 121
Pure “ Vestals” . . . 123
M’s Corroboration. . . 123
In Defence of Mohini. . . 127
A Double Untruth about H. P. B. . . 129
Missionaries swear to ruin the T.S. . . 131
D. N’s Reluctance to meet H. P. B. . . 133
A List of Calumnies . . . 135
The Treachery of Hodgson . . . 137
The Truth about Hodgson and S.P.R . . . 139
The “Vase” Phenomenon. . . 141
The Metrovitch Incident. . . 143
The Private Part of H. P. B.’s Life . . . 145
H. P. B. never Mme. Metrovitch. . . 147
Myers of the S.P.R . . . 149
H. P. B. travels with the Master . . . 151
Mentana . . . 153
H. P. B. never a Medium . . . 155
The Countess sees M . . . 157
D.N.nearlymad . . . 159
The Opinion of a Hindu . . . 161
Col. Olcott’s” Temple of Humanity” . . . 163
The Letter of Hurreesinjhee . . . 165
D. N. a Fanatic . . . 167
Instructions to Sinnett re D.N . . . 169
The Laws of Occultism . . . 171
D.N.a”Chela” . . . 173
The Reason for Soloviofi’s Defection. . . 175
Medical Evidence on H. P. B . . . 177
—•— xii CONTENTS —•—
LETTERS No. I-CXX—continued
H. P. B. like a Boar at Bay. . . 179
Bowaji’s Deception . . . . 181
The Influence of Bowaji. . . 183
Mohini’s Indiscretions . . . . 185
The Dweller on the Threshold . . . 187
A Warning from Master Illarion . . . 189
Libels and the Law . . . . 191
A Family Embroglio . . . . 193
The Writing of The Secret Doctrine. . . 195
Subba Row and The Secret Doctrine . . . 197
The Policy of Masterly Inactivity . . . 199
Mr. Lane-Fox . . . 201
Valuable Evidence from Subba Row. . . 203
Lethargy in the London Lodge . . . 205
More about Solovioff . . . . 207
Evidence of the Berlin Graphologist . . . 209
A Duchess, a Fairy Tale, and Money. . . 211
The Last Alternative . . . . 213
Myers and Solovioff . . . . 215
The Memoirs . . . 217
Anna Kingsford . . . 219
The Purpose of the Masters’ Society . . . 221
The T.S. and Masters’ Protection . . . 223
High Opinion of Sir Wiffiam Crookes . . . 225
Sinnett very young in Occult Matters. . . 227
Politics and Opinions . . . . 229
The Ethics of Jesuitry . . . 231
The Will of the Jesuits . . . 233
“Those Accursed Memoirs” . . . 235
Col. Olcott acts like a Fool. . . 237
H. P. B. gossips . . . . . 239
The Buddha and Brahmanism . . . 241
Buddhas and Bodhisatwas. . . . 243
The Seven Worlds, Races, Globes . . . 245
Evolution and Involution . . . 247
Planets, Rings, Rounds . . . 249
Dimensions and Rounds . . . 251
Maya and Reality . . . . 252
Spirituality of Good and Evil . . . 255
The Power of Seeing and Knowing . . . 257
Man’s Growth and Evolution . . . 259
A Final Correction . . . . 261
MISCELLANEOUS LETTERS
I.—Countess Wachimeiste,
LETTERS No. CXXI-CLIV. . . 265/303
A Scandalous Statement. . . 267
Trials and Difficulties . . . . 269
The Sancharacharya and the T.S. . . . 271
A Chela’s Thanks . . . 273
—•— xiv THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
The “ Russian Spy” Calumny. . . 275
Perfection is to be found Nowhere. . . 277
Babaji’s Frenzy . . . 279
Criminal Charges . . . 281
Babaji and Hatha Yog . . . 283
H. P. B.’s Enemies . . . . 285
H. P. B.’s Second Marriage . . . 287
Continuous Persecutions . . . 289
Professor Selin makes Mischief . . . 291
H. P. B.’s Indiscretions . . . 293
H. P. B. must not be left alone. . . . 295
Personal Feelings must go . . . 297
The Cause of Walter Gebhard’s Death. . . 299
Foolish Credulity. . . 301
The T.S. throwing off its Linga Sarira . . . 303
II.—A. 0. Hume
LETTERS CLV-CLVII . . . . 304/311
Mr. Hume is dissatisfied . . . 305
H. P. B.’s Missing Principle . . . 307
Hume blasphemes . . . . 309
Hume knows better than Masters. . . 311
III.—William Q. Judge
LETTERS CLVIII-CLX . . . . 312/315
Judge received Letters from K. H.
. .
. 313
Persecutions and Trials in America
. .
. 315
IV.—T. Subba Row
LETTERS CLXI-CLXIV . . . . 316/323
The Adepts of India . . . . 317
Why it is impossible to teach Hume . . . 319
Subba Row’s Knowledge. . . 321
A Proficient in Occult Science . . . 323
V.—H. S. Olcott
LETTERS CLXV-CLXXI. . . . 324/334
Sancaracharya an Initiate . . . 325
Hume goes into Polities . . . 327
Col. Olcott “goes” for H. P. B. . . . 329
About Babajee . . . . 331
H. P. B.’s Expenses. . . 333
VI.—Babajee D. Nath
LETTERS CLXXII-CLXXIX . . . 335/344
Babajee loyal to Theosophy . . . 337
The “Mystic” Name of D. N. . . . 339
Brahman Customs . . . . . 341
A Letter through Babajee . . . 343
—•— xv CONTENTS —•—
VII.—The Gebhards.—Ernst Schutze.—Mohini.—Damodar.—Elliott Coues.— Anna Kingsford.—Eglinton
LETTERS CLXXX-CXCIV . . . . 345/362
Babajee’s Influence . . . 347
The Handwriting Expert’s Testimony. . . 349
H. P. B.’s Health . . . 351
How Hume received Letters . . . 353
Damodar is indignant . . . 355
Elliott Coues and H. P. B . . . 357
Anna Kingsford and K. H. . . . 359
Puja made to a personal God . . . 361
VIII.—Mahatma Letters
LETTERS CXCV-CCVIII . . . 363/366
Relative and Absolute Truth . . . 365
I.—Death. By Eliphas Levi. With Marginal Notes of K. H.
. .
. .
369—375
II.—Cosmological Notes. From A. P. Sinnett’s MS. Book . . . . . 376—386
III.—Cures effected by Col. Olcott in Calcutta by Mesmeric Passes . . . . 387—389
INDEX
391—404
A Typical Specimen of Mme. Blavatsky’s Handwriting
“. . . It was thy patience that in the waste attended still thy step, and saved MY friend for better days. What cannot patience do. . . . A great design is seldom snatched at once, ‘tis PATIENCE heaves it on. . . .”—K. H.
MY DEAR BOSS,
Going away to-morrow—THANKS to FATE!! The Disinherited tells me you are living in a damp place and that you will suffer from it. Do you live in a tent? Mr. Hume asks me to enclose this slip from the C. and M. Sewer for you. Did you receive Pce Dondoukof’s letter to me. M. wants me to tell you to show it to as many of your French speaking friends and my enemies as you possibly can, and to show it to Mr. Ratigan also. He says he will impress you what to do. Does he want to develop you into a Mejium? My boil aches fearfully yet I tell you I am a she Job!
My love to Mr. Tyrrell and Struit—or how do you spell his name? My best regards to Mrs. and Mr. Patterson.
Your orphaned friend and
-- ?
H. P.
B.
Just received your 20 Rupees. Oh Pioneer—protector of the “up-a-tree”occultists!
March 25th.
MY DEAR MR. SINNETT,
You are right. All or nothing is their motto. And why should you subject yourself to daily torture? K. H. will correspond with you the same as he does now if it is all you want.
The “Vega”? Not Nordenskiold’s Vega that went North Pole and passed through Siberia but Eglinton’s Vega on which he sailed for England. By this time and as I write [to] you know all, since you received this morning Mrs. Gordon’s telegram about her having had a letter from Eglinton dropon her nose last night, with remarks from the Bosses and my humble self.Last night between 8 and 9 evening I received two letters from Eglinton
I There is a communication from K. H. written across the lines of H. P. B.’s letter. This appears here in bold type.—ED.
—•— 4 THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
direct in the presence of 7 witnesses from the roof. One was for me, the other for Mrs. Gordon. He asked me to send it over to her in a natural way, but K. H. wanted me to send it off immediately and I did so. The letter from E. and my two visiting cards which I wrote before my guests last night at 8 ½ and the Boss’ remarks were all at Howra in a few seconds. That’s all. “Only that and nothing more.”
K. H. says he saw Eglinton and secured him. Now remains to be seen what kind of “guides” E. will hook on K. H.
I do not feel well. I am sick, bilious, dyspeptic and feel mad with the whole universe. I do not know how I can go to Madras with such a heat.
My love to dear Bossess. If I but knew to write as she does I would be a happy woman.
Yours in moonshine
H. P. BLAVATSKY.
Postcard addressed to A. P. Sinnett Esq.
TENDRIL,
SIMLA,
Aug. 9.
Savez-vous quel jour votre article Indo-British India a ete publie? Le Sept. Et savez-vous, que vous avez trouve un ami pour la vie dans Morya? Ces quelques bonnes paroles prononcies
—•— 5 M.’s INSTRUCTION TO SINNETT —•—
pour la premiere fois dans le Pioneer. Vous feront plus de bien que tout ce que vous avez fait jusqu’ici. Je ne comprenais pas pourquoi il montrait tant d’anxiete de vous envoyer son portrait. Je comprends tant maintenant.
I send you to-day the proofs of the two letters. Please send them back as soon as possible.
Yours in Indo-British
India,
H. P. B.
MULLIGAN.
Ordered by My Boss to tell Sinnett, Esq., the following: --
1. Not to lose the opportunity to night of acquainting R. S. with every detail of the situation he can think of, whether relating to the Society or his projected matrimonial ideas.
2. To insist upon having a true copy of the hitherto written sketches of Cosmogony with the Tibetan words, M.’s notes etc. H. P. B. is also ordered to have one, as she has to know thoroughly what Mr. Hume has noted and how much he has elaborated of the explanations. Otherwise when the reaction comes and Mr. Hume begins studying once more—either Mr. Sinnett nor H. P. B. will be au courant of his thoughts; and he will begin once more abusing—like the quartette of musicians in Aesop’s fable—the instruments on which he does not know to play.
3. Mr. Sinnett is advised, once he is in Allahabad, to announce the formation of the Allahabad Society, calling it “The Anglo Indian Investigation (Theosophical) Society” or some such name which would not jar upon the nerves of the unbelieving community. Let it be distinct from the other Branch in Allahabad called the “Prayaga Theos. Society” though the Hindus in it might be very useful to Mr. Sinnett and he will find wonderful mesmeric subjects in it, if he but searches.
4. Mr. Sinnett is advised by M. to make a special duty to prevent his little son being made to eat meat—not even fowls, and to write so to Mrs. Sinnett. Once the Mother has placed the child under K. H.’s protection let her see nothing pollutes his nature. The child may become a powerful engine for good in a near future. Let him be trained as his own nature suggests it.
5. Mr. S. is reminded to telegraph O. not to answer one word to M. Hume until he receives a letter from Mr. Sinnett.
6. Mr. S. is advised, now that he will be alone, to put himself in communication through Adytyarum B. with some Hindu mystics, not for the sake of philosophy but to find out what mental phenomena can be produced. At the Mela there is a number of such visiting the town.
—•— 6 THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
7. Whenever he feels like writing or needs M. advice, Mr. Sinnett is invited to do so without hesitation. M. will always answer him, not only for K. H.’s sake but his own sake, as Mr. S. has proved that even an Anglo-Indian can have the true S---- SPARK in him, which no amount of brandy and soda and other stuff can extinguish and which will occasionally glitter out and very brightly.
Written Nov. 2nd, Lahore, 1880.
DEAR BOSS,
I am afraid I begin a task above my strength. But if I do not yet peg out I am determined to fight my way through and never leave one chance to my enemies to bother me. This is why I begged you to publish a few words in reply to a stupid and vile insinuation (and far better if it could be done in the shape of three or four lines in the Pioneer 1st page).
In Bombay Gazette Nov. 6 it is said that “A correspondent of the Englishman throws another ray of light upon the occultism at Simla. He says: In all the correspondence about the T.S. I do not think it has yet been mentioned that Mme B. is the correspondent of a Russian newspaper. A series of letters have appeared in the Anti-English newspaper the Moscow Gazette . . . purporting to be written from India by a lady member of the T.S. who signs herself Ruddha-Bai. The letters are headed “from the caves and forest-valleys of India.” The writer could not well have been other than Mme B. The snake tiger of India enchanted stories narrated in those letters are entirely theosophical and steeped in occultism.”
To this it is that I answered a few lines remarking that the only light which this fact (of my being the correspondent of a Russian newspaper however Anti-English) -- could ever throw upon the Simla phenomena was that of the possibility of some new hallucination on the part of the Govt. of India—perhaps a suspicion that it was the secret Russian political spies who were my confederates. That I never made a secret of my being a correspondent for the Russian newspapers none of which ever was but Anti-English (I would like to find one which is not!) or writing under the nom de plume of Radha Bai. And that so little was it a secret that in my last letter to the Russian papers
—•— 7 H. P. B.’s ATTITUDE TO K. H. —•—
from Simla it was from some of the officials themselves that I got the needed information etc. (You know about Ramchundra.)
This it was I sent to you fervently begging you to print it, for I was anxious to break the head of at least one of my idiotic enemies. To this K.H. remarked that it was far better if I should let you write a few words as an editorial remark upon the foolish para: (above cited). I said – no. I knew you did not like to be asked to write, besides my writing would be better and more appropriate. So I sent to you this. But it appears that he need have his own way. For how could my letter be lost otherwise? It was Mah. K. H. who played some trick of his only because he is wise and strong and healthy and I foolish and now weak and sick. I do not hold it as friendly on his part. If I am so useless and foolish why don’t they annihilate me? The doctor (Laurie) won’t permit me to start tomorrow. He advises me though to change locality. Strong nervous disease, fever and etc. he says. Oh I have enough of this old carcase!
Love to both of you
Yours quand meme
H.
P. BLAVATSKY.
Spirit is strong
but flesh is weak; so weak sometimes that it even overpowers the strong spirit
“which knows all truth.” And now, having almost shaken off its control this poor
body raves. Since even
I
am not above suspicion in her sight, you can hardly be too indulgent or use too
many precautions until this dangerous nervous crisis is passed. It was brought
on by a series of unmerited insults (which of course such men as you and Col.
Olcott would not have even noticed but which none the less put her to the
torture) and can be cured only by rest and peace of mind. If you are ever to
learn any lesson about man’s duality and the possibility through occult science
of awakening from its dormant state to an independent existence the invisible
but real I am, seize this chance. Observe and learn. It is cases like this which
puzzle the biologist and physiologist. But as soon [as] one learns this duality
all becomes as clear as day.
I am
sorry to say I can now only act thro’ her upon very rare occasions and under the
greatest precautions. Mr. Hume’s letter to her, a letter full of suspicion and
benevolent insult – proved the “one drop too much.” Her Punjab fever—once the
typhoid symptom removed is no worse in itself than many a European has passed
through; while I may tell you now that the crisis is over—her reason as well as
her life were in peril on Saturday night. As for myself you must always believe
me your true and sincere friend.
KOOT HOOMI LAL SINGH.
—•— 8 THE LETTERS OF H. P. BLAVATSKY —•—
Tuesday Something.
Your two MSS. received. Well the readers will be stuffed this time and no mistake—with occult doctrine. Mr. Sinnett A.P.’s article, two letters 1 & 2 numbers, Mr. Hume A.O