This peer-reviewed study represents a culmination of years of research into the history of the Theosophical Society. In this unique project which combines biographies with source analyses, Jeffrey D. Lavoie records a detailed history of the early Theosophical Society and examines its relationship with the modern Spiritualist movement between the years 1875-1891. Special attention has been paid to some of the neglected figures associated with these organizations including Arthur Lillie- the Gnostic-occultist and early critic of the Theosophical Society; the Davenport Brothers- the Spiritualist mediums who developed many of the standard elements which became associated with modern Spiritualism; Alfred Wallace- the prominent scientist, Spiritualist, and supposed member of the Theosophical Society and many others. This work will appeal to a wide array of readers including those interested in modern religious movements, Western Esotericism, South Asian history, and Victorian studies.

This is a new release of the original 1925 edition.

The Theosophical Society (est. 1875 in New York by H. P. Blavatsky, H. S. Olcott and others) is increasingly becoming recognized for its influential role in shaping the alternative new religious and cultural landscape of the late nineteenth and the twentieth century, especially as an early promoter of interest in Indian and Tibetan religions and philosophies. Despite this increasing awareness, many of the central questions relating to the early Theosophical Society and the East remain largely unexplored. This book is the first scholarly anthology dedicated to this topic. It offers many new details about the study of Theosophy in the history of modern religions and Western esotericism. The essays in Imagining the East explore how Theosophists during the formative period understood the East and those of its people with whom they came into contact. The authors examine the relationship of the theosophical approach with orientalism and aspects of the history of ideas, politics, and culture at large and discuss how these esoteric or theosophical representations mirrored conditions and values current in nineteenth-century mainstream intellectual culture. The essays also look at how the early Theosophical Society's imagining of the East differed from mainstream 'orientalism' and how the Theosophical Society's mission in India was distinct from that of British colonialism and Christian missionaries.

The colorful history of the Theosophical Society in America. Although Helena P. Blavatsky and Henry S. Olcott founded the Theosophical Society in New York in 1875, they left the country in 1878 for India, where they established the international headquarters. It might seem that the three short years would not be long enough to establish firm roots here, yet by 1886 there were 14 branches in cities as far flung as St. Louis, Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The American Section was formally chartered in 1886, and this book was published in 1987 -- a century as full of events and change for the Society as for the country itself.

This book is for people who want to understand how the mind works, and how to change it. If we want to grow to our fullest human potential, Easwaran says, we have to train the mind. If we follow his eight-point program, we can begin to choose the way we think and become the kind of person we want to be. Drawing on the teachings of the Buddha, Easwaran's approach is universal and practical, putting our destiny in our own hands. And since it's hard to understand the hidden workings of the mind with the mind, Easwaran selects anecdotes to throw a spotlight on our thinking processes and to point the way to mastering them. For readers who have enjoyed Easwaran's Passage Meditation, Conquest of Mind gives another, intriguing perspective on his eight-point program.

This title represents pioneering research into an important but under-researched current. The three sections in the book are devoted to the Theosophical Society, Theosophically influenced religious currents, and the interaction between Theosophy and surrounding culture.