Theos-Talk Archives (December 2006 Message tt00702)

Koot Hoomi authorizes publication of those portions of his letters 
dealing with the teachings.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

In an 1884 letter to Mohini Chatterji, Koot Hoomi wrote:

"You may, if you choose so, or find necessity for it, use in Man
or in any other book you may chance to be collaborating for, anything 
I may have said in relation to our secret doctrines in any of my 
letters to Messrs. Hume or Sinnett. Those portions that were private 
have never been allowed by them to be copied by anyone; and those 
which are so copied have by the very fact become theosophical 
property. Besides, copies of my letters — atany rate those that
contained my teachings — have always beensent by my order to Damodar 
and Upasika [H.P.B.], and some of the portions even used in 'The 
Theosophist.' You are at liberty to even copy them verbatim and 
without quotation marks. ... Thus not only you, a chela of mine, but 
anyone else is at liberty to take anything, whole pages, if thought 
proper, from any of my "copied" letters and convert their 'dross' 
into pure ore of gold, provided they have well grasped the thought. 
Show this to L.C.H. who was already told the same."
Quoted from:  Letter 39 in "Letters from the Masters of the 
Wisdom,"First Series.

Notice KH's words: "my 'copied' letters"

These copied letters were sent to Francesca Arundale, C.C. Massey and 
others in London.

C. Jinarajadasa writes about these copied letters:

"When these letters were received by Messrs. Sinnett and Hume, copies
were sent by order of the Master K.H. To H.P.B. And Damodar Mavlankar.
Often extracts from them were sent to C.C. Massey in London, and 
others. Slowly as the months passed, an accumulation arose of these 
communications.  It is from these original letters received from the 
Masters that Mr. Sinnett wrote his Esoteric Buddhism. Copies of these 
letters, sometimes full and sometimes only important extracts from 
them, have been in the possession of the older and trusted 
Theosophists of Mr. Sinnett's old circle. One such copy was lying in 
the possession of C.W. Leadbeater, and I remember, as a boy, often 
looking at it. When in Australia in 1922, I had a copy made
from this manuscript book of C.W. Leadbeater, and brought it to Adyar.
It was only after the manuscript had been set up by the printer that,
casually asking Miss Francesca Arundale if she had any copies of these
early teachings, she brought out three manuscript books, and handed
them to me. To my delight, I found that the books of Miss Arundale
were far fuller than the book by C.W. Leadbeater. I have very 
carefully transcribed all that appears in both books, putting 
together as best I can, and in as coherent a fashion as possible, 
these early teachings."

In 1923 Jinarajadasa published the "copied" letters in a book titled:

THE EARLY TEACHINGS OF THE MASTERS 1881-1883
http://www.theosophical.ca/EarlyTeachings.htm

Also available as reprinted by Kessinger Publishing:

http://tinyurl.com/yxsbj9

But ever since THE MAHATMA LETTERS TO A.P. SINNETT were ALSO first 
published in 1923, many ULT students have objected to the publication
of The Mahatma Letters.

Yet in light of what Master Koot Hoomi wrote in 1884 [SEE HIS WORDS 
ABOVE] even ULT students should have no objection to the publication 
of those "copied" letters in Jinarajadasa's book since the Koot Hoomi 
authorized the publication of such letters.

I write the above because I have been told that even today the 
various ULT lodges will NOT allow official study of the Mahatma 
Letters. But what would be wrong with the study of the "copied" 
Letters???

Daniel
Blavatsky Study Center
http://blavatskystudycenter.org