Theos-Talk Archives (December 2006 Message tt00669)

AUTHORSHIP OF SECRET DOCTRINE

by William Q. Judge 

A good deal has been said about the writing of Isis Unveiled, and 
later of the Secret Doctrine, both by H. P. Blavatsky. A writer in 
the spiritualistic journals took great pains to show how many books 
the first work seems to quote from, and the conclusion to be arrived 
at after reading his diatribes is that H.P.B. had an enormous 
library at her disposal, and of course in her house, for she never 
went out, or that she had agents at great expense copying books, or, 
lastly, that by some process or power not known to the world was 
able to read books at a distance, as, for instance, in the Vatican 
at Rome and the British Museum. The last is the fact. She lived in a 
small flat when writing the first book and had very few works on 
hand, all she had being of the ordinary common sort. She herself 
very often told how she gained her information as to modern books. 
No secret was made of it, for those who were with her saw day after 
day that she could gaze with ease into the astral light and glean 
whatever she wanted. But in the early days she did not say precisely 
to the public that she was in fact helped in that work by the 
Masters, who gave from time to time certain facts she could not get 
otherwise. The Secret Doctrine, however, makes no disguise of the 
real help, and she asserts, as also many of us believe, that the 
Masters had a hand in that great production. The letters sent to Mr. 
Sinnett formed the ground for Esoteric Buddhism, as was intended, 
but as time went on it was seen that some more of the veil had to be 
lifted and certain misconceptions cleared up; hence the Secret 
Doctrine was written, and mostly by the Masters themselves, except 
that she did the arranging of it.

For some time it was too much the custom of those who had received 
at the hands of H.P.B. words and letters from her Masters to please 
themselves with the imagination that she was no more in touch with 
the original fount, and that, forsooth, these people could decide 
for themselves what was from her brain and what from the Masters. 
But it is now time to give out a certificate given when the Secret 
Doctrine was being written, a certificate signed by the Masters who 
have given out all that is new in our theosophical books. It was 
sent to one who had then a few doubts, and at the same time copies 
were given from the same source to others for use in the future, 
which is now. The first certificate runs thus:

I wonder if this note of mine is worthy of occupying a select spot 
with the documents reproduced, and which of the peculiarities of 
the "Blavatskian" style of writing it will be found to most 
resemble? The present is simply to satisfy the Doctor that "the more 
proof given the less believed." Let him take my advice and not make 
these two documents public. It is for his own satisfaction the 
undersigned is happy to assure him that the Secret Doctrine, when 
ready, will be the triple production of [here are the names of one 
of the Masters and of H.P.B.] and _______ most humble servant, 
[signed by the other.]

On the back of this was the following, signed by the Master who is 
mentioned in the above:

If this can be of any use or help to _____, though I doubt it, I, 
the humble undersigned Faquir, certify that the Secret Doctrine is 
dictated to [name of H.P.B.], partly by myself and partly by my 
brother ______.

A year after this, certain doubts having arisen in the minds of 
individuals, another letter from one of the signers of the foregoing 
was sent and reads as follows. As the prophecy in it has come true, 
it is now the time to publish it for the benefit of those who know 
something of how to take and understand such letters. For the 
outside it will all be so much nonsense.

The certificate given last year saying the Secret Doctrine would be 
when finished the triple production of [H.P.B.'s name], ________, 
and myself was and is correct, although some have doubted not only 
the facts given in it but also the authenticity of the message in 
which it was contained. Copy this and also keep the copy of the 
aforesaid certificate. You will find them both of use on the day 
when you shall, as will happen without your asking, receive from the 
hands of the very person to whom the certificate was given, the 
original for the purpose of allowing you to copy it; and then you 
can verify the correctness of this presently forwarded copy. And it 
may then be well to indicate to those wishing to know what portions 
in the Secret Doctrine have been copied by the pen of [H.P.B.'s 
name] into its pages, though without quotation marks, from my own 
manuscript and perhaps from ______, though the last is more 
difficult from the rarity of his known writing and greater ignorance 
of his style. All this and more will be found necessary as time goes 
on, but for which you are well qualified to wait.

ONE OF THE STAFF

Path, April, 1893