Theosophy

im sure plenty of people browsing this forum would identify with this. to an extent, i do as well. the kicker would be how to define god.

 

Theosophy has a certain appeal, because it offers a complete worldview which (superficially) satisfies people's desire for esoteric understanding, but it's largely a complete perversion of traditional philosophies and religions. Much of what it claims (notably its chakra system) is utter bullshit, and many of its leading members (including its founder Blavatsky) have be proven to be charlatans.

 

Theosophy is very interesting. I've begun to read 'Isis Unveiled' by Blavatsky. Here's a link.
 
http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/isis/iu1-05.htm
 
When I read some of 'The Secret Doctrine,' there was one thing that jumped at me, that I grappled with a bit. Her talk of root-races. To just say that aspect of it, I think it would definitely sound to most people racist. Yet it is almost a necessary component of the larger framework, which is all very interesting. Basically, the idea is something like this. Humanity has actually existed for an extremely long time. The world exists through cycles, and there have been many cycles of human civilization reaching great heights, then being destroyed, and then the process repeating, advancing a bit further through the larger cycle each time.
 
Something like this. There are 7 earths. Each of the 7 earths goes through 7 cycles of progress. Each cycle contains 7 root races, each of which has 7 waves. At times, she seems to refer to these earlier root-races as being more spiritual, and in some ways better. Yet at other times, she seems to describe certain natives and things like this as belonging to earlier root races, primarily the 4th and occasionally the 3rd. When she talks of these modern people who are actually manifestations of the earlier root-races, she does it in a denigrating way. She says we're currently primarily of the 5th root race, but as I said each root race as 7 progressive waves. There was definitely mention at some point of white people being of the recent waves of evolution. Anyways, this idea of root-race does seem to literally mean race, at least in part of its meaning. There does seem to also be a general idea that each progressive wave and root-race is more evolved. Anyways, you can see how this could potentially be seen as or lend itself to racism.
 
Nonetheless, the whole idea and framework, as has become known to me at this point in time, is no doubt intriguing. The idea of a progressive cyclic evolution, harmonic evolution, is certainly interesting. And I certainly don't want to make a negative association, just something that jumped at me at a time before when I was studying theosophy.

 

I just made a post about this http://forum.grasscity.com/religion-beliefs-spirituality/1280143-religion-simply-many-peoples-way-defining-same-feeling.html#entry19461189

 

Yeah this is what I truly believe and this describes almost every thought and feeling I have.  I came up with the same big picture sort of thinking whilst tripping by myself in an explorative way multiple times.  Actually every time.  Every time i've been going after an intellectual experience riveted with innovative thinking and that's exactly what I got.  I made a couple posts about this.  
 
The most important thing about my spiritual belief is that it was all concocted inside my own head and then later finding out people have come to the same realization.  Just now did I find out about Theosophy and it gives me great joy to call my way of thinking an actual word. It was tiresome having to explain EVERYTHING every single time. instead of having it spoon fed to me by parents, media, and friends.  You should do your OWN research, come to your OWN conclusions based on your OWN logic.

 

http://www.theosociety.org/pasadena/sd/sd1-2-02.htm
 
Here is a link to 'The Secret Doctrine.'

 

I just got on this forum yesterday feeling very much alone in my way of thinking.  You have no idea how awesome it feels to not be alone with what it feels like the 'right' way of thinking.

 

Been reading The Secret Doctrine. Fascinating stuff. I've mentioned elsewhere my long-term slight 'addiction' to the system of Aleister Crowley, which includes 32/34 'elements' which are supposed to be the essences underlying all things in the Universe. These are represented in table form in 'liber 777.' There are thus endless correspondences representing these ideas, to be found for instance in various spiritual systems. Reading through The Secret Doctrine, it is fascinating to see these concepts being represented without mention of the associations that seem obvious. Really has been helping to expand on certain ideas. At least gives me a sense of some unity and therefore coherence with 'occult knowledge,' which I haven't entirely had.
 
Here's a link to liber 777, if anyone is interested. It's not the one I would normally use, but for some reason that one isn't loading right.
 
http://www.golden-dawn-canada.com/pdf/liber 777 revised.pdf

 

Been continuing to read the Secret Doctrine. The whole idea is easy to get into, and if you can get into it then its very profound seeming. One of the things I am struggling with, as far as it potentially being a real belief system, is its expressed opposition to our modern understanding of evolution. It does not deny evolution, the whole system is evolutionary. But it says man didn't evolve from earlier primates, but have nearly always existed on the Earth. The history of the earth is a series of evolutionary progressions in seven kingdoms, one of which being man. They are all fundamental components of earth. They all evolve from primordially spiritual, to physical, to an evolved spiritual level, to generalize the 7 phases. So they all have always existed. There have been multiple periods in which civilization rose, and then was destroyed, to be followed by inactivity, and then an eventual rise again. This process repeats many times, or infinite probably from another perspective. Anyways, the idea is fascinating, but the way she is so adamant about the opposition to common understanding of evolution makes it a bit harder to be able to think of it as a real belief system to have.

 

sounds like gnosticism or other deist types of belief, in short, nothing new. One of the many names for beliefs that are suppressed by society because it encourages people to hold themselves above the law.

 

If you look online, you can find like all of the major theosophical works on theosociety.org. It appears to be an 'official' site. So, they are publishing all of their major works for free online. Now keep in mind one of the major tenets is that all human religion and spirituality stems from a common, ancient, source, which meaning and teachings have been lost among the masses. The claim is that theosophy is an attempt at revealing those ancient teachings. The fact that they put all their major works up online, to be read for free, I think adds some legitimacy at least to their sincerity. I've never understood how with all the lofty talk of non-materialism and the like with spirituality, practically noone strays from selling their teachings just the same as a fiction writer's books.