Theos-Talk Archives (March 2007 Message tt00050)

Dear Daniel, Perry, Gregory, Adelasie and all

Thank you for this excellent collation Daniel.
My very ordinary attempts to elucidate legitimate concerns about 
Bishop Leadbeater and others' misrepresentations of Madame Blavatsky 
and her teachers' Theosophical teachings, mindset and methodology 
have been far surpassed at a very high level of quality through these 
quotes you have collated Daniel,the quote from Sri Madhava Ashish 
recently brought here by Perry and the many historically factual 
postings from Dr Tillett. 

Please forgive the "stuck record" but along with many, many other 
examples, Bishop Leadbeater and Dr Besant repeatedly claimed to be in 
direct and ongoing contact with Madame Blavatsky's teachers. 
At the same time they wrote utterly contradictory teachings on so 
many subjects, whilst claiming they were representing these very same 
teachers and their teachings. 

You would think that any reasonable and fair-minded person would have 
to conclude that they were either completely delusional or simple 
liars. 

It seems incredulous and extraordinary that apologists continue to 
ignore these demonstrable facts either claiming them to be themselves 
lies or dismissing them as unimportant and separative. 

As putative seekers after truth, as evanescent as it may be to our 
limited minds, do we really need to ask why all this important?

In our search to make sense of life and whatever purpose it may have, 
surely we must develop criteria for determining the veracity or 
otherwise of pronouncements made by self-appointed life-teachers as 
our absolute minimum, starting point? 
Issues such as character, reputation, trustworthiness, lifestyle and 
other considerations might also be added to the equation, not for the 
sake of judgement/condemnation but objective discernment. 

Where we can determine certain teachers to have lied on many 
occasions and to have misrepresented others' teachings, why would we 
wish to continue studying their works? Do they make us feel 
comfortable and secure? Are they romantic and alluring to the way we 
might wish things to be? 
What do any of these have to do with spirituality? Do we really learn 
and grow when comfortable, indulgent and romantically deluded? 
Or do we require constant challenge and confrontation to keep our 
minds open and alert?

Madame Blavatsky and her Mahatmas' teachings, whether absolutely 
accurate or not, by their nature and methodology, challenge and 
stretch our minds and hearts often to breaking point. It is at this 
point that our arrogance and self-opinion, our desire for self-
comfort, predictability, security and safety begin the inevitable 
process of falling away and we are ultimately left with who we are in 
the raw, true state.

The only value I can determine from studying, accepting and following 
Bishop Leadbeater and his clones' romanticised teachings, many of 
which are fallacious and misrepresentative, is that when we finally 
awaken from our state of mental torpor, we will in the future be so 
much more wary of being so blindly deluded.

Thanks again Daniel
Kind regards
Nigel   


--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "danielhcaldwell" 
<danielhcaldwell@...> wrote:
>
> Should Theosophical students be 
> concerned about Pseudo-Theosophy?
> 
> Well, it appears that H.P. Blavatsky herself was
> concerned enough about the DISTORTION
> of theosophical teachings that she issued
> warnings and even corrections.
> 
> One may ask why one should be even concerned
> about such alleged distortions.
> 
> Notice how Madame Blavatsky addresses this
> issue:
> 
> "The great evil of the whole thing is, not that the truths of 
> Theosophy are adopted by these blind teachers, for we should gladly 
> welcome any spread, by whatever means, of ideals so powerful to 
wean 
> the world from its dire materialism - but that they are so 
interwoven 
> with mis-statements and absurdities that the wheat cannot be 
winnowed 
> from the chaff, and ridicule, if not worse, is brought to bear 
> upon. . . [the Theosophical] movement. . . ."
> 
> "How shall men discern good from evil, when they find it in its 
close 
> embrace?"
> 
> "The very words, 'Arhat,' 'Karma,' 'Maya,' 'Nirvana,' must turn 
> enquirers from our threshold when they have been taught to 
associate 
> them with such a teeming mass of ignorance and presumption. . . ." 
> 
> "Though false coin is the best proof of the existence of genuine 
> gold, yet, the false deceives the unwary. . . ." 
> http://blavatskyarchives.com/onpseudotheosophy.htm#save
> 
> H.P.B. repeats this same theme elsewhere:
> 
> "?.If the 'false prophets of Theosophy' are to be left untouched, 
the 
> true prophets will be very soon--as they have already been--
confused 
> with the false. It is nigh time to winnow our corn and cast away 
the 
> chaff." 
> 
> "? We do not believe in allowing the presence of sham elements in 
> Theosophy, because of the fear, forsooth, that if even 'a false 
> element in the faith' is ridiculed, the latter 'is apt to shake the 
> confidence' in the whole?."
> 
> "?However it may be, let rather our ranks be made thinner, than the 
> Theosophical Society go on being made a spectacle to the world 
> through the exaggerations of some fanatics, and the attempts of 
> various charlatans to profit by a ready-made programme. These, by 
> disfiguring and adapting Occultism to their own filthy and immoral 
> ends, bring disgrace upon the whole movement?."
> http://blavatskyarchives.com/onpseudotheosophy.htm#if
> 
> And once again HPB addresses this same issue:
> 
> ". . . A new and rapidly growing danger. . . is threatening . . . 
the 
> spread of the pure Esoteric Philosophy and knowledge. . . . I 
allude 
> to those charlatanesque imitations of Occultism and 
Theosophy. . . . "
> 
> ". . . A close examination will assuredly reveal. . . materials 
> largely stolen . . . from Theosophical writings. . . [and] 
distorted 
> and falsified so as to be palmed off on the unwary as revelations 
of 
> new and undreamed of truths. But many will neither have the time 
nor 
> the opportunity for such a thorough investigation; and before they 
> become aware of the imposture they may be led far from the Truth."
> 
> ". . . Nothing is more dangerous to Esoteric Truth than the garbled 
> and distorted versions disfigured to suit the prejudices and tastes 
> of men in general." 
> 
> I draw special attention to HPB's words:
> 
> "...the truths of Theosophy... are so interwoven with mis-
statements 
> and absurdities that the wheat cannot be winnowed from the 
> chaff. . . ."
> 
> "...many will neither have the time nor the opportunity for such a 
> thorough investigation; and before they become aware of the 
imposture 
> THEY MAY BE LED FAR FROM THE TRUTH." caps added
> 
> Food for thought....
> 
> Daniel
> http://hpb.cc
>