Mrs. Holloway (1843-1930) is a character from early theosophical history who is all but forgotten by theosophists and non theosophists alike. Still, as can be learned from this new biography, she seemed on just way to theosophical fame at one point. She received quite a few Mahatma letters, was comfortable around Blavatsky, very close to Judge [...]
Best books about Theosophy
I’ve studied theosophy since I was 18. These are some recent books about the topic that you should not miss if you’re serious about the tradition.
Those of you who are into Western Esotericism and Tarot will be glad to hear that Nicholas Swift has taken Blavatsky up on the hints she gave in her letters and looked at the Babylonian cylinders. Blavatsky Collected Writings Vol XIV pp 106, 94 and 174, p. 12 of the book under review. This is not [...]
Some books are eagerly awaited by only a select group. This book is one of them. That doesn’t diminish their worth to their audience though: in this case theosophists who study The Secret Doctrine by H.P. Blavatsky seriously. Blavatsky had her own Secret Doctrine study-group in London in 1889. They discussed her Magnum Opus pretty [...]
I’m reviewing a Dutch book here today: Het Web der Schepping, Theosofie en Kunst in Nederland, van Lauweriks tot Mondriaan, by Marty Bax. I won’t be repeating that exercise often, however in this case it’s really worth it. There are few good books about the history of theosophy in the Netherlands. It’s obviously a niche [...]
The yoga sutras are two thousand year old spiritual classic. In India every spiritual teacher of any note has written a commentary on it. Ravi Ravindra is the latest of Jiddu Krishnamurti’s students to do the same. For that reason alone this book will be read in theosophical circles at least. But Jiddu Krishnamurti doesn’t [...]
I’m not really into Alice Bailey’s work, nor into that of ‘The Tibetan’, but this autobiography is great. Funny, full of self knowledge and simply fascinating from the point of view of esoteric history. Alice Bailey was born and raised in England in 1880. She lived through both world wars and lived the transition from [...]
I got this book off the author/publisher a few months ago. I let it lie sallow, as I’m not much into poetry. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t understand poetry. I had a discussion once on the first set op poems my brother got published. A year or so later he noted [...]
The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett is one of the books that is central to theosophical literature. I read, and reread it a lot, in the early years of my being involved with the Theosophical Society and it’s one of the books I based my first online project on ‘The Esoteric Studies Guide‘. Joy Mills [...]