Theos-Talk Archives (May 2001 Message tt00100)

Frank,
It is a fair point that you make, that the photos may bring some to the SD.
On the other hand, when you have a photograph of the surface of Mars taken
by Viking I Lander (1976) plus part of the housing containing the surface
sampler scoop, adjacent to vol I, page 272, where the SD says: "The Secret
Doctrine is the accumulated Wisdom of the Ages, and its cosmogony alone is
the most stupendous and elaborate system...," it makes the 1976 picture (as
compared to Wisdom of the Ages) completely out of place.
". . . The flashing gaze of those seers has penetrated into the very kernel
of matter, and recorded the soul of things there, where an ordinary profane,
however learned, would have perceived but the external work of form. But
modern science believes not in the "soul of things," and hence will reject
the whole system of ancient cosmogony. It is useless to say that the system
in question is no fancy of one or several isolated individuals. That it is
the uninterrupted record covering thousands of generations of Seers ..."

This is so different to a picture of the surface of Mars in 1976. The
symbols and illustrations in the original text of the S.D. go to the soul of
things, and do cover thousands of generations, and do relate to the Wisdom
of the Ages. The Tau for example, the glyph of the third root-race to the
day of its symbolical Fall, some 18,000,000 years ago. To me the Mars
picture doesn't relate to the Wisdom of the Ages, but it does raise the
question, is it in fact Wise to be thinking of exploring a planet that is in
obscuration?

". . . . . It is quite correct that Mars is in a state of obscuration at
present, and Mercury just beginning to get out of it. You might add that
Venus is in her last Round. . . . . . . . . . . Again, both (Mars and
Mercury) are septenary chains, as independent of the Earth's sidereal lords
and superiors as you are independent of the 'principles' of Daumling (Tom
Thumb) -- which were perhaps his six brothers, with or without night-caps. .
. . . . . . . . "(S.D.I, p. 165)

What is incorrect is to have given the impression, that because of the
photos, then there are automatically going to be changes in the text.
First we noticed the changes in the text, and then that the extra
illustrations that B de Z put in relate to the outer, which for me, fits
with his approach. . . a dead-letter approach. Altering the outer words to
fit a particular point of view. As has been said before, in the PROEM
there is disk, Disk and disc. Three different spellings on the first 4
pages. In the Wheaton edition there is just the one spelling "disk," and so
it goes on from there with the alterations.... Why change the spelling?
When one reads of how the S.D. was produced by the Masters and H.P.B.,
should we be concerning ourselves with altering the text, and its layout and
style. It is also possible to see that the extra illustrations could take
people away from the "SD" and can be a distraction. This is how I see it
at the moment.
Thanks for your comments and the mails you send, as always.
Tony


-----Original Message-----
From: Frank Reitemeyer [mailto:ringding@blinx.de]
Sent: 12 May 2001 8:40 pm
To: theos-talk@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: Theos-World WHO PLAYED THAT TRICK ON H.P.B.? by Boris de
Zirkoff


Tony wrote in part:
Once we do the kind of thing you are suggesting in your mail, surely the
Boris de Zirkoff S.D. (quite different to that of H.P.B. and the Masters)
comes into question too, because of the changes made there? The fact that
there are pictures of the moon landing, etc. in the work, surely points to
the way it has been interpreted by those editors, and thus the kind of
alterations to the text they make? You use the word "really," isn't it to
the inner globes HPB and the Masters were referring, rather than to the
outer planets . . . and so on.

Dear Tony,
I always find your comments very helpful and your various look on
alterations of the VOS and SD are eyeopeners and even in case all your
criticism is wrong (what I not believe) it is at least worth to consider.
Esp. the kabalsitic background to the VOS was very helpful to me.
With your point above I cannot agree. The fact that in the Wheaton edition
are photos from space craft is to me not a sign that there are errors in
text (although they may as you suggest of which I have no judgement at
present). I think it is very helpful in a popular edition to draw the line
to modern times as some say that Theosophy or the SD is outmoded. The photos
could help to attract those who are most likely no tre beleivers that the SD
is a serious book and not SF.
Frank





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