Theos-Talk Archives (May 2012 Message tt00095)

H S OLCOTT: A BOILING POT

 

Col. H S Olcott, the Founder-President of the Theosophical Society, can be seen as a boiling pot and what he brought into the pot were:

1. A keen sense of `agriculture' to make the `harvest' more for the benefit of the hungry humanity,
2. One utter sense of integrity, a probing eye at corruption and similar malpractices at high places in American army and navy,
3. The daring eagle perceptive view into matters of death, calling back the dead and continuity of life in search for the immortality of the soul,
4. An undisturbed loyalty to the `Brotherhood of Man' and the dire need to awaken the slumbering masses/intelligentsia to the overpowering Truth, and 
5. A sense of identity and association that is ever available in the pre- and post- manifestation.

He was selected by the Masters of the Wisdom, aided by Them thus:

1. Provided the opportunity to learn Occult Science direct and through Madame Blavatsky,
2. Offered the occasion to form a Society for kindling the `new continent of thought', fountain for that to carry on the work for centuries to come,
3. Endowed with "TRY" as the Key-word (Mantra/Bija) for life, and 
4. Granted spiritual healing powers using `auric energy' to help the orphan humanity, which even helped the arrest of religious conversion on the agenda of the missionaries.
5. Capacitated to revitalize of true religious spirit through revival of Sanskrit, and ancient literature; and the forgotten sciences of Asiatic countries.

The Pot is the Body, form - of the Theosophical Society. The content is the knowledge/faculties he put in, and made others put in. boiling is the thorough churning of the human consciousness. The resultant vapor is the theosophical fragrance, a scent of Eternity. A man of history, he made history and tamed the tigers and lions into vulnerable, insightful creatures. 

His striking, sublime qualities that paved way for his selection, as viewed by the Masters were:
1. Always holding his head high yet feet on the ground to work for man,
2. Concern about the humanity as whole, - racial prejudices, social inequalities, and religious bigotry making him a valiant defender for the weak and meek,
3. Organizational skill, not being an autocrat but `consulting' all warring groups in bringing about rapport in religious-social issues of life,
4. Meeting people, common and scholarly, saintly and royalty, and selling the idea of `solidarity of man/manifestation' and his policies of `association',
5. Encouraging the scholars to work on Ancient Literature to present `Lights' in a new/ eternal way.


He was inspired and instructed by Masters of the Wisdom, Serapis, Hilarian, Morya, Koot Humi and others even before the formation of the Society and ever in the course of its evolution.

He was a Mason, and this saved his life at a time when he was ordered to be executed in the course of his `reporting career'. 

He was scholarly, and had sharp insight in grasping the concealed philosophic points and modulating them to the working systems of men of the world.

His work for Buddhism had special mention in his endeavor to popularize the concept that all religions spring from the same source, One Center. This idea was drilled into him by HPB during the times of her making `Isis Unveiled'.

He gathered people round him and made their faculties blossom. 

He was under direction of Brotherhood of Luxor Section V, even before the formation of the Theosophical Society. He continuously received messages and communications Serapis and others. One important point to be noted here is that he was placed in charge of keeping HPB in good physical and mental condition. This was the special charge he was asked to perform and did this excellently well to receive acclamation of the Great Ones.  We see from the letter no. 3 (second series compiled by C Jinarajadasa) that a communication signed as from Tuitit Bey of Observatory of Luxor as below:
`Sister Helen is a valiant, trustworthy servant. We keep watch over our faithful servant. Open thy spirit to conviction, have faith and she will lead you to the Golden Gate of truth.TRY'
Letter no. 9 in the series refers to the `bitter hours of mental agony and sorrow of HPB and looking towards Olcott for friendly advice and soothing words of comfort.' Letter no.10 says: `Remain in Boston. Do not forsake her cause, your own happiness, the salvation of your younger brother --- forgive her outburstings of passion, be patient, merciful; and charity bestowed on another will return to you a 100 fold.' Letter no. 11 says,' If you succeed to bring her out before the world in her true light, not of an adept but of intellectual writer and devote yourself both to work together the articles dictated to her, your fortune will be made. Make her work; install her, lead her in practical life as she must lead you in the spiritual. ---.` The further letters are full of instruction. 

It is not that he had no weak-points and short-comings. He was periodically well reprimanded and corrected by his Teacher for these. To quote a few: his suspicion about HPB, `Saving the Society' ignoring the existence of Great Ones, making statements `in bravado' in the Coulomb case, providing Oakley too much comfort and liberty to write against HPB, joining the erring groups in find-faulting etc. As set-off to these and many, he stood firm by her and valued her wisdom till the last. The mutual appreciation they had earned Masters' reward for both. We have recorded evidence on this score.         ***

His concern all the time was the Theosophical Society and its Original program. Visualizing his own end of life, he was worried on two points and it is remarkable he succeeded in his efforts to resolve them well. One was the incorporation of the Society and securing a statutory/ legal status, and the second was finding a suitable successor to the Presidency of the Society. He had the help and assistance of the gentleman Iyyalu Naidu, in whose name the property at Adyar was initially purchased, and that of Justice S Subramania Iyer who made the documents for incorporation. His gratitude for these two persons was solid and salutary. His nominating Annie Besant, and her becoming acceptable to the real Founders, and as well to the general membership of the Society by virtue of an election, proved his credibility once again.

It was not an easy go to start a mysterious organization, in the trying times of materialistic predominance and the advent of spiritualism and psychism as new disciplines, which would sustain meaningfully for centuries to come.
 
The all-time boiling and churning of the Pot brought, to the advantage of humanity at large, a consistent `new find' and an enormous vastness of `Thought' that could `end the thought' and enter a new arena of Spiritual Intelligence. No amount of thanks giving would meet with the thankless service he rendered to humanity that was driven to a `forlorn hope'.