Theos-Talk Archives (December 1998 Message tt00192)

I want to make it clear that I do not wish to criticize HPB or her
Theosophical work in any way.  She is obviously far more learned, in the
strict sense, as well as more traveled and more spiritually developed than ANY
of us on this list.  I take that as self-evident.

Dallas has spent a lifetime satisfying himself that Theosophy as presented is
completely coherent and far above modern scholarship, which may in fact be
true.  However, in my scant 12 years in the movement, I have found a number of
contradictions and puzzles which give me pasue, and help me take HPB seriously
that "There is no Religion Higher than Truth" and that even HPB should be
investigated and, if necessary, supplemented.

Again, I have no wish to proclaim that the Glossary is utterly useless as a
research tool or as an aid to understanding HPB and Theosophy.  What I wrote
is that it is untrustworthy, and I stand by that.  Numerous entries are
troublesome and need to be checked.  Unfortunately, as stated, none of us have
the education and development of HPB.  So we each have our little fields of
expertise, and we investigate.  Here are the few investigations I have time to
share today, a few Glossary entries which have minor typos to serious errors
of fact.

Codex Nazareus: Epiphanius wrote in the 4th century, not the 14th.

Dakini: in the Glossary they are wholly evil elementals, in the SD. vol. 2,
dangerous but useful spiritual consorts; their leader is called Sangye Khado,
"Enlightened Spirit."

Dugpas: According to my knowledge (and I'm checking with my prof) the word
does not mean anything close to "red hat."  Rather, one of its various
homonyms (and it's tough to know which one because HPB spells things
phonetically and not "correctly" with silent letters) it means evil,
poisonous.  I have previously posted my feelings on this topic, but the hard
and fast distinction which may in the 15th century have applied to Yellow and
Red Hats is not only misleading but pernicious, condemning as it does most
Tibetans to the Evil School.  But then HPB contradicts herself, and states
that most Dugpas live in Bhutan, unaware of pure Northern Buddhism.  So does
Dugpa mean "Red Hat" for HPB (in which case Tibet is full of them) or "Bonpo,"
a practitioner of native Tibetan religion -- most of whom currently live in
Bhutan.  I think it's the latter, and we should all stop castigating the poor
Lamas who belong to schools predating the Gelugpa (Dalai Lama) sect.  But in
any case, the translation "Red Hat" is, I feel certain, completely wrong.
I'll update you with my (practising Buddhist) professor's knowledge.

Fakir: Instructive because HPB here says distinctly that in Isis (and
presumably, many early works) a misleading ("loose") terminology was used.

Tantra: In the Glossary, wholly erroneous, even the literal definition.
Tantra is literally "a loom; warp (as opposed to woof); the essential or main
point."  Many tantras do focus on female visualizations, but many do not.   At
least the following entry on "Tantrika" distinguishes white and black magic!

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More late when finals are over.

Rich