BP 
 561 
 
 S44ZW 
 1922 
 
 1 
 
 A = 
 
 
 Ai 
 
 ^-^^ CO 
 
 = 
 
 r- 
 
 m 
 
 - J. 
 
 1 
 
 == S! 
 
 3 = 
 
 = o 
 
 8 1 
 
 
 5 = 
 
 ^^= ro 
 
 
 — ij 
 
 2 = 
 
 
 2 = 
 
 Is 
 
 3 m 
 
 ^= O 
 
 
 — * 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 
 WADIA 
 
 SOIVIE OBSERVATIONS 
 ON THE STUDY OF THE 
 SECRET DOCTRINE
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 Some Observations on the 
 Study of The Secret Doctrine 
 
 of H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 ■'. 
 
 B. P. WADIA 
 
 ^'«'0N H\<^^
 
 Some Observations on the 
 Study of The Secret Doctrine 
 
 of H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 B. P. WADIA 
 
 <?■, 
 
 ^'^'onn'fi'^^ 
 
 THEOSOPHICAL ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK 
 
 230 Madiison Avenue 
 
 New York City
 
 Copyright l!>22 
 By Theosophical Association of New York. 
 
 All Rights Reserved. 
 
 B. P. WAD I A 
 
 Growth Through Service 
 
 The Inner Ruler 
 
 Problems of National and 
 International Politics 
 
 Printed in the United States of America.
 
 FOREWORD ^ij^lZ^O 
 
 REGARDING THE AUTHORSHIP OF THE 
 SECRET DOCTRINE 
 
 The Secret Doctrine is dedicated to all true Theoso- 
 phists in every country and of every race, "For," said 
 H. P. B.. "they called it forth and for them it wa^ 
 recorded." The Secret Doctrine therefore is a Record, 
 and thus a very different kind of a book than ordinary 
 publications. For the student who wants to learn from 
 this wonderful Record, it is necessary that he should 
 take note of the following three very important and 
 signihcant statements regarding the actual authorship 
 of the book : — 
 
 Statement (1) "I wonder if this note of mine is 
 worthy of occupying a select spot with the docu- 
 ments reproduced, and which of the peculiarities 
 of the 'Blavatskian' style of writing it will be 
 found to most resemble? The present is simply 
 to satisfy the doctor that 'the more proof given 
 the less believed.' Let him take my advice and 
 not make these two documents public. It is 
 for his own satisfaction the undersigned is happy 
 to assure him that The Secret Doctrine, when 
 ready, will be the triple production of ( here are 
 the names of one of the Masters and of H. P. 
 
 B.) and most humble servant," 
 
 (signed by the other). 
 
 On the back of this was the following, signed by 
 the Master who is mentioned in the above: — 
 
 "If this can be of any use or help to , 
 
 though I doubt it, I, the humble undersigned Fa- 
 quir, certify that The Secret Doctrine is dictated 
 to (name of H. P. B.) partly by myself and 
 partly by my brother "
 
 Statement (2) "The certificate given last year, say- 
 ing that The Secret Doctrine would be, when 
 finished, the triple production of (H. P. B.'s 
 
 name), , and myself, was and is 
 
 correct, although some have doubted not only 
 the facts given in it, but also the authenticity of 
 the message in which it was contained. Copy 
 this, and also keep the copy of the aforesaid 
 certificate. You will find them both of use 
 on the day when you shall, as will hap- 
 pen without your asking, receive from the 
 hands of the very person to whom the cer- 
 tificate was given, the original for the pur- 
 pose of allowing you to copy it; and then 
 you can verify the corrections of this pres- 
 ently forwarded copy. And it may then be well 
 to indicate to those wishing to know what por- 
 tions in The Secret Doctrine have been copied 
 by the pen of (H. P. B.'s name) into its pages, 
 though without quotation marks, from my own 
 
 manuscript and perhaps from _ , 
 
 though the last is more difficult from the rarity 
 of his known writing and greater ignorance of 
 his style. All this and more will be found nec- 
 essary as time goes on, but for which you are 
 well qualified to wait." 
 
 Statement (3) "I have also noticed your thoughts 
 about The Secret Doctrine. Be assured that 
 what she has not annotated from scientific and 
 other works we have given or suggested to her. 
 Every mistake or erroneous notion, corrected 
 and explained by her from the works of other 
 theosophists was corrected by me, or under my 
 instruction. It is a more valuable work than its 
 predecessor, an epitome of occult truths that will 
 make it a source of information and instruction
 
 for the earnest student for long years to come." 
 (From a letter of Master K. H. to Colonel Ol- 
 cott, published in "Letters from the Masters of 
 the Wisdom" — page 54) . 
 
 Statements (1) and (2) given above will be found in 
 "Reminiscences of H. P. B. and 'The Secret Doctrine^ " 
 by The Countess Wachtnieister and Others, at pages 
 ll'l — 116. The circumstances under which these 
 certificates were given are narrated therein by Dr. 
 Hubbe-Schleiden, page 113, as follows: 
 
 "I never did and never shall judge of the value or 
 the origin of any mental product from the way and 
 manner in which it is produced. And for this reason 
 I withheld my opinion then, thinking and saying: T 
 shall wait until The Secret Doctrine is finished and then 
 I can read it quietly; that will be the test for me, the 
 only one that will be any good.' 
 
 "This is the reason why on the night of my last part- 
 ing from H. P. B., the two certificates, which were 
 printed for the first time in the last April number of 
 The Path, page 2, were given to me."
 
 SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE 
 
 STUDY OF THE SECRET DOCTRINES OF 
 
 H. P. BLAVATSKY.* 
 
 "What I do believe in is: (1) the unbroken oral 
 teachings revealed by living divine men during the 
 infancy of mankind to the elect among men ; (2) that it 
 has reached us unaltered ; and (3) that the Masters are 
 thoroughly versed in the science based on such uninter- 
 rupted teaching." 
 
 H. V. B. in Lucifer, October, 1889. 
 
 ''The Secret Doctrine is not a treatise, or a series of 
 vague theories, but icontains all that can be qi'i'cn out 
 to the world in this century." 
 
 Secret Doctrine. Volume I, Page XXXVIII. 
 
 (Edition 1888). 
 
 People who attend classes for the study of The Secret 
 Doctrine usually do so for one of two reasons. First, 
 there are those who want the teachings for the purpose 
 of self-improvement, who go to the book with the hope 
 of obtaining simple, clear-cut formulae for the devel- 
 opment of psychical or abnormal powers, such powers 
 as the great author of the book, H. P. Blavatsky, is 
 herself reported to have possessed; some seek mental 
 self-improvement, hoping that the book will enable them 
 to run the race of the competitive life on this earth in 
 a more efficient manner. Secondly, there are those 
 wlio go to the book with the hope of obtaining straight, 
 definite teachings of Theosophy presented in a way that 
 an ordinary intelligent individual can grasp, with the 
 desire of imparting the teachings to others, and helping 
 them to understand the great truths; these desire to 
 
 « 
 
 • Report of a talk to a Rroui) of students and cn<iuirersl Riven at the 
 Headquarters of the Theosophical Association of New York, on Satur- 
 day. February 18tJi, 1922.
 
 learn so that they may teach. In both these cases the 
 student is apt to be disappointed ; for, while it is quite 
 true that The Secret Doctrine does help individual 
 spiritual growth, it does so along a line that is the least 
 suspected by the would-be student ; while it is also true 
 that the teachings of The Secret Doctrine are there for 
 all those who possess a mind not altogether untutored, 
 still the information conveyed, the teachings imparted. 
 the whole exposition of Theosophy is put forward in 
 an unexpected style, in an unfamiliar way, by a strange 
 and almost unique method. 
 
 Sometimes people complain that H. P. B. did not 
 know how to write clearly and lucidly. That is not so. 
 Readers of the Key to Theosophy can testify to the fact 
 that the author of The Secret Doctrine possesses the 
 faculty of expounding her teachings in a very lucid, 
 clear-cut and straightforward manner. Let it be there- 
 fore noted that H. P. B. had a purpose in view when 
 she wrote as she, did write; that H. P. B. had not an 
 "involved style of writing," as it is often called, is 
 clearly proven to the reader of such of her books 
 as Caves and Jungles of Hindustan and Night- 
 mare Tales. H. P. B. had the power of giving 
 out her teachings in a direct and lucid manner 
 whenever she chose to do so ; if at any time she 
 followed a method other than that, it was with a dis- 
 tinct purpose in view. That purpose relates itself to 
 the developing of that faculty or quality to which refer- 
 ence will be made. Another criticism of the writer of 
 The Secret Doctrine may well be taken up here. It is 
 often claimed by her critics that she wanders into by- 
 ways and digressions in presenting her subject, that 
 she often flies off at a tangent and labors unnecessarily 
 to prove her point by quoting ancient texts and modern 
 authors. In this connectio'^n let it not be forgotten that 
 H. P. B. was an occultist, and that no occultist ever 
 
 8
 
 puts his teachings before the pubhc on his own author- 
 ity alone, unsupported by corroborative testimony of 
 occultists of previous ages. H. P. B. could never say : 
 "I have had a vision ; it is your duty to accept it." She, 
 as an occultist, was obliged to give all the evidence that 
 she could gather to support her teachings, and this she 
 has done. 
 
 A proper study of The Secret Doctrine should ac- 
 complish two things ; if the student proceeds along the 
 right lines, his own inner life will get an impetus and 
 his own spiritual progress will be furthered ; also his 
 capacity to learn and to gather information and tliereb}' 
 to teach and serve others will be greatly strengthened. 
 
 The Secret Doctrine, when correctly studied, pro- 
 duces a definite change in those who study it. The 
 specific method which has been employed in writing the 
 book brings out a particular kind of faculty in the 
 student — the faculty of spiritual perception. That fac- 
 ulty is the penetrative quality of the mind; th.it aspect 
 of mind which has for its nature the quality of penetra- 
 tion into any subject which is being studied. There- 
 fore the student of The Secret Doctrine should always 
 remember that the study of this book will awaken in 
 him, and will strengthen in him that particular faculty 
 which will enable him to penetrate more fully into all 
 subjects, whether these subjects be inside or outside The 
 Secret Doctrine. In this study, properly carried on, a 
 particular mental process is bound to take place in 
 which this faculty will be sharpened ; this is the special 
 contribution which the study of The Secret Doctrine 
 makes to personal progress. Naturally this faculty 
 does not appear instantaneously — its development takes 
 time; neither will the occasional persual of the book, 
 nor the attendance of a study-class once a week, bring 
 this faculty to light. But if the student takes The 
 Secret Doctrine as his book of individual study, and 
 gives to it one half hour of his time every day at a
 
 regular hour, great results can be brought about. It 
 such a course be pursued, the mind, because of the law 
 of automatic action, will begin to operate, will com- 
 mence to respond to the vibrations that are raised by 
 the study of this book, so that when the hour of the 
 weekly class arrives, the faculty is brought to it sharp- 
 ened in some measure by the daily effort, and much 
 more keenly sensitive than would have been possible 
 without this dailv work. 
 
 INDIVIDUAL WORK FOR THE CLASS 
 
 In order that this faculty may be developed, it is not 
 necessary for the student to read page after page of 
 T]\c Secret Doctrine, from the first page to the last, 
 neither is it essential that subject after subject be stud- 
 ied with the help of the index. The point that is ot 
 the utmost importance is that the daily study be under- 
 taken from the point of viezv of the development of this 
 faculty. If the book be opened at any page, in either 
 of the two volumes, the student should begin to read 
 with concentration, trying definitely to understand that 
 which he is reading and endeavoring to illuminate his 
 mind in terms of the written thought. In this manner, 
 slowly but steadily the faculty will grow. Unless this 
 individual work be done, the student will not be able to 
 gain or give the greatest possible amount of benefit 
 from and to the group ; for, in the class something else 
 should be done. In the class, the faculty which has 
 been steadily growing by the power of individual effort 
 should be applied to grasp and understand some par- 
 ticular subject. The information that one may get about 
 a certain subject is not the first essential, as so many 
 people think ; the thing of fundamental concern to the 
 student is the building of this faculty, the developing of 
 this power of mind which, as the ancient books put it, 
 
 10
 
 is capable of alighting upon a subject of putting itself 
 down into it. of sucking out everything that is in the 
 subject and thus illuminating it. The faculty must first 
 be there in order that the subject may be thoroughly 
 and rigidly understood. 
 
 Each member of the group should come to the study 
 class with the faculty which he has been shaq:)ening all 
 week through his individual efforts. This faculty he 
 applies in the class to the gaining of knowledge on the 
 particular subject which the group is studying. The 
 Secret Doctrine is of so complex a nature, is so intricate 
 in its composition, that it is only when individuals as a 
 group come together to discuss it harmoniously, to give 
 all that each has to give and to take all that the others 
 have to offer, that a thorough and complete under- 
 standing of its teachings becomes possible. Very few 
 minds can accomplish this individually, and this is a 
 fact peculiar to the study not only of The Secret Doc- 
 trine but of all occult books. Consider the manner in 
 which the Upanishads used to be studied in the East. 
 Each individual took a verse and meditated upon it ; 
 then verse after verse the Upanishads were repeated and 
 chanted in groups, each verse being discussed and de- 
 bated in order that the truth underlying it be thoroughly 
 understood and comprehended, and thus made part 
 and parcel of the life. Thus in all the old schools, even 
 in the rules as observed today in true occult schools the 
 double aspect of study is found ; first the aspect of in- 
 dividual study, where the effort is made to develop the 
 faculty, then the aspect of group study where the stu- 
 dents come together to express and exchange theii 
 views, and where the faculty gained by individual 
 effort is applied in a certain way and for a ceriran 
 purpose. 
 
 11
 
 THE OBJECT OF THE CLASS 
 
 The object of group study it twofold: first to gather 
 information, to learn something definite ; second to 
 teach to others what has been learned. If self-improve- 
 ment alone be the motive that actuates the study of The 
 Secret Doctrine, the knowledge acquired will not be full 
 or profound. The book is without doubt written for 
 the spiritual growth of the student, but this growth is 
 possible only when the teachings are utilized for the 
 spiritual help of others. This does not necessarily 
 mean that the facts learned are to be given to others ; 
 it means that certain aspects of the truths that have 
 been learned, Vv^ith their application to the affairs of 
 daily life, be passed on to those with whom the stu- 
 dent comes into contact. The effort must be made 
 to help others by means of the things that have been 
 learned in the group, otherwise the work of the group 
 is not complete. Suppose the group is studying the 
 subject of Rounds and Races. The subject is not 
 very simple, and to teach it as such would be neither 
 interesting nor helpful to the majority of people. But 
 in the practical application of the teachings in every 
 day life much interest would be found and much good 
 could be accomplished. The discovery of what the 
 Races are in the humanity that surrounds us, the mean- 
 ing of cycles and their application to life, all these 
 things are of practical value and should be passed on 
 to those outside the class room. 
 
 Just as the individual has a certain relationship to 
 the group, so has the group itself a definite relation- 
 ship to the \vide world outside. Both of these must 
 be borne in mind by the student, as upon these two 
 relationships depends the success of any study group. 
 That each individual sharpens his faculties so that 
 he may serve his own group, and that each group 
 gains knowledge so that it may better serve the world- 
 
 12
 
 group called Humanity ; this should be the foundation 
 stone and the basic aim of every individual in every 
 group that takes up the study of The Secret Doctrine. 
 
 THE METHOD OF STUDY 
 
 Now as to the method of study which has been 
 found to be most helpful. Many people, when be- 
 ginning the study of The Secret Doctrine, lose them- 
 selves in innumerable details, before they have even 
 faintly grasped the meaning of the subject itself. The 
 first general rule for a study-group is to obtain a 
 fair view of the entire structure of The Secret Doc- 
 trine with the help of the Contents and a general 
 turning over of the pages of the two volumes. A 
 careful perusal of the Preface, Introductory, Proem 
 and Summing up in the first Volume, and of the Pre- 
 liminary Notes and the Conclusion in the Second will 
 give an adequate idea of the superstructure of the 
 book. 
 
 When this is done a particular subject may be 
 chosen for study. This study must devote its early 
 period to grasping principles, broad and general facts, 
 paying no attention to the details. 
 
 Study the subject as thoroughly as possible with 
 the help of the Index and other works of H. P. B. 
 [sis Unveiled. Key to Thcosophy, Modern Panarion, 
 Voice of the Silence, etc., and her articles in the 
 Theosophist, Lucifer and The Path. Then write down 
 what is learned and if the tendency is to go into 
 details, check it and confine the efiforts to the expres- 
 sioni of broad principles. The attempt should be 
 made to write this resume of the study in simple, 
 untechnical language, using words, phrases and sen- 
 tences which are familiar to the ordinary man or 
 woman in the street. The real test of understanding 
 a teaching comes when the student is able to express 
 this teaching in simple, untechnical terminology, and 
 
 13
 
 until this is possible, he has not mastered the teach- 
 ing thoroughly. 
 
 This implies that every member of the group should 
 participate in the work of gathering information and 
 presenting it in a proper and suitable form to the 
 group. No leader, however clever or however industri- 
 ous in his work for the class, can do full justice 
 to all the books of H. P. B., and therefore the various 
 volumes of her writings should be distributed to the 
 different members of the class, each member of the clas.s 
 having a special book for his own particular work. 
 If the study group be of the nature of a round table 
 conference, to which every member comes with his 
 own contribution, willing not only to learn but to teach 
 as well, genuine work will be accomplished. It is neces- 
 sary to work in order to gain wisdom, and this distri- 
 bution of labor among all the members of the class 
 makes it possible to avoid the institution of teacher 
 and taught, leader and listener, and tends to produce 
 the atmosphere of impersonality so important and ne- 
 cessary in work of this kind. 
 
 When the broad principles are mastered and out- 
 lined, the study group should go into the numerous 
 details, fill in the gaps and complete the summary. 
 These summaries should be produced for the help- 
 ing of others ; therefore the summaries should not 
 be criticism or personal interpretation of the writers 
 of the summary but should be faithful translation of 
 H. P. B's teachings. What is wanted is her teaching 
 and opinions, not our views on them. 
 
 The idea of using tlie material which has been 
 gathered at the study classes as the ba.sis of future 
 lessons for other people is a primary factor in group 
 work, and therefore the selection of subjects in which 
 the outside world would be interested becomes of 
 
 14
 
 paramoiuit importance. If the student intends to pre- 
 pare lessons for other people who arc not in the class, 
 people who are not acquainted with The Secret Doctrine, 
 the first question he should ask himself is "What are 
 the subjects in which the outside world would be 
 most interested? In which subjects would they be able 
 to find the most help for their next step of growth?"' 
 For these teachings should not be given out with the 
 intention of interesting or amusing the public, not 
 even for the purpose of instructing them in an intel- 
 lectual way ; rather should the endeavor be made to 
 give something that will enable people to take the 
 next step forward from the spiritual point of view. 
 Therefore in planning out lessons, the three great Vs 
 of teaching should be taken into account — Interest, In- 
 struction, Inspiration ; the lessons should arouse the in- 
 terest of the students, give information and instruc- 
 tion, and at the same time inspire them to take the 
 next step in advance in their own spiritual life. 
 
 SELECTION OF SUBJECTS OF STUDY 
 
 What are the particular Theosophical teachings that 
 will be of greatest help to the man of the world? 
 The concept of Evolution, the nature of God, God's 
 relation to His Universe through evolution. — these are 
 fundamental things that will interest and instruct and 
 inspire. The simple propositions, the fundamental 
 teachings, the practical tilings that can be applied in 
 daily life, these are the teachings that should be studied 
 and set forth ; the Theosophical concept about the na- 
 ture of God, about the lines of Evolution, but above all 
 the question — "What is Theosophy ?" 
 
 H. P. B. herself has given indications in her Proem 
 and the Summing up — The Three Fundamental Propo- 
 sitions established by The Secret Doctrine (See Vol. 1, 
 Proem, pages 14-17, Ed. 1888) and the six Items re- 
 
 15
 
 viewed in the Summing up (Vol. 1, pages 269-282) 
 make an excellent foundation for group work. There- 
 fore the following definite suggestions may be put for- 
 ward for stud\' work: 
 
 First. Understand thoroughly and in all its inward- 
 ness the teaching of H. P. B. on "What is Theoso- 
 phy." 
 
 Second. Study the Three fundamental Proposi- 
 tions. 
 
 Third. Study the Summing up, especially the six 
 items. 
 
 If success is hoped for, it is a wise thing for the 
 group to have a definite plan, and in this plan the time 
 element should play an important part. It is also 
 wise for the group to definitely formulate the essen- 
 tial details of the plan before the first meeting where 
 study will begin, and after these details are formulated 
 they should be strictly adhered to. Members of the 
 group should look upon each meeting as a strict duty 
 which should be religiously performed, and sundry in- 
 terferences should not be allowed to creep in. 
 
 THE MIND OF THE AUTHOR 
 
 In the study of The Secret Doctrine, an attempt should 
 be made by each student to contact the Mind of the 
 writer. If the student sits down to his study with 
 his lower mind emptied of all thoughts, and entirely 
 at rest, at peace with itself and all the world, if he 
 approaches his study with a feeling of willingness, 
 nay eagerness, to grapple with a difficult subject and 
 a determination to attempt to contact the Mind of 
 the writer of the book, then may he hope for real 
 results. If the group of students who are gathered 
 together for the purpose of studying The Secret Doc- 
 trine begin each meeting with a short meditation on 
 
 16
 
 the particular aspect of wisdom that they wish to 
 contact ; if they harmoniously and in perfect unity 
 try to lift their thoughts to a higher level ; if they 
 be intent, concentrated and harmonious, not making 
 cross currents by unnecessary debate and discussion 
 but each making his contribution as it comes to him, 
 each in his way trying to contact the Mind of the au- 
 thor of the book, if this method of study be followed, 
 help and illumination will come. And this help and 
 illumination will come not only from the student's 
 mind but also from the Mind that recorded the teach- 
 ings, for that Mind is very much alive and will help 
 the students of the book if they proceed in the right 
 manner, along the occult and spiritual line. 
 
 STUDY AND INTERPRETATION 
 
 Therefore, in order that the best results may ac- 
 crue, certain things should be definitely settled before 
 the group has its first study meeting — such as the 
 day and hour, the procedure of study, the method of 
 study and the material which will be taken up, the 
 order in which the class will be conducted, and all 
 the other details. When the study meetings themselves 
 have begun, when the students are gathered together 
 in perfect unity and harmony, with minds consecrated 
 to the task that lies before them, in proportion as 
 the mind of each student is concentrated and perfectly 
 at rest, ideas will begin to strike him. This last phrase 
 is a good one, for when the student begins to come into 
 the spiritual world and into the world of the Masters 
 and Their atmosphere, he will literally find ideas be- 
 ginning to strike him. ideas which will illuminate the 
 passage he is reading. Information will begin to come 
 to him from within, not from without. If the student 
 takes note of this fact, he will see the reason why it is 
 not wise to come into the atmosphere of discussion 
 
 17
 
 and debate. If the statement of each student be put 
 down, if the contradictions which seemingly appear 
 be also recorded, at the end of the meeting if the 
 whole record be read there will be seen to be a harmoni- 
 ous progress, in spite of the seeming contradictions, 
 in some direction, towards a definite goal ; many tilings, 
 to be sure, will necessarily have to be rejected, but 
 gradually a vast amount of information will be built 
 up and the right method of grasping The Secret Doc- 
 trine will have been discovered, that method being to 
 read not only between the lines, but within the words 
 as well. 
 
 When the topic of study is selected, and when the 
 information about the subject is culled from the two 
 volumes of The Secret Doctrine, many students will 
 find that these ideas do not coincide with then- own 
 preconceived ideas on the subject. Therefore one 
 of the first things that the student should understand 
 is this : that he is not studying The Secret Doctrine 
 for the purpose of getting corroboration of his own 
 theories, but that he is studying it in order to find out 
 what The Secret Doctrine has to say on this particular 
 subject, even if these ideas are opposed to his own pet 
 theories. Therefore when the student approaches the 
 study of this book, his own mind should be emptied 
 of preconceived notions and ideas about the subject 
 which he has elected to study. He should not try 
 to read in terms of knowledge gained from other 
 sources; he should try to get at H. P. B.'s mean- 
 ing, not to impose his own meaning upon her teach- 
 ings. He should allow H. P. B. to speak, not to 
 speak for her. And in order to understand what 
 she does mean, it is necessary to see what she her- 
 self has said, to let her writings speak, and not use 
 books written by other people in order to understand 
 H. P. B. ; rather it is wise to use what H. P. B. 
 
 18
 
 herself has written, The Secret Doctrine^ Isis Unveiled. 
 A Modern Panarion, Five Years of Theosophy — all 
 of these books can be studied to get a clearer idea 
 of her teachings. 
 
 If the earnest desire is present in the student to 
 fully comjirehend H. P. B.'s teachings, and if the effort 
 be made to follow the occult method of study, the 
 faculty of spiritual perception and the faculty of ex- 
 pression will begin to flower in him ; for these two 
 faculties go always hand in hand — the faculty of per- 
 ception which comes from individual study and the 
 faculty of expression by group study. And as these 
 two faculties begin to become inter-related in the stu- 
 dent, he will find arising in himself that spiritual pow- 
 er, that inner, higher intuitive mind, so that he will 
 carry the atmosphere of The Secret Doctrine with 
 him all the time, he will be able to understand subjects 
 that are not even mentioned in the book. The stu- 
 dent must get into the very life of that book ; he should, 
 so to speak, envelop himself in its aura, surround 
 himself with its atmosphere, so that its force goes 
 with him everywhere. 
 
 THE REAL AUTHORS OF THE BOOK 
 
 And now let me come to the closing point. Never 
 forget that H. P. B.'s Secret Doctrine forms part of 
 the Record in the custody of the Masters. From 1875, 
 her teachings have guided the true student in his 
 quest, and till 1975 they will continue so to guide. 
 It is not essential to labour that point here. All 
 that is necessary is to draw the attention of the stu- 
 dent to the fact that II. P. B. was a Messenger of 
 the Great Lodge, the Occult Fraternity, and that she 
 wrote the l)ook in the company, under the guidance 
 and with the co-operation of the Great Masters. Every 
 
 19
 
 group endeavoring to study the Book should earnest- 
 ly and seriously attempt to contact the life of the Real 
 Authors, H. P. B. and her Collaborators. 
 
 The Masters live, and we should try with zeal and 
 devotion to make hem real in our lives. Nothing 
 helps the honest student in this task more than the 
 right study of The Secret Doctrine. Masters can not 
 be found by practice of psychic tricks and by dubious 
 contacts with astralism. They can only be found 
 by meditation and study, by intellectual honesty, by 
 sincerity of purpose, and above all by the uttermost 
 purity of life. 
 
 True Occultism, whose Teachings are expounded 
 in The Secret Doctrine, does not recognize direct or in- 
 direct, conscious or unconscious contacting of forces 
 which are not of white or beneficent magic. It de- 
 mands rigid self -discipline of life, the complete sub- 
 dual of our selfish and animal propensities, the un- 
 equivocal denial to countenance in ourselves or in 
 others any non-pure or non-moral aspects of life, much 
 less of impure or immoral ones. The Road to the 
 Masters is the Road of Purity — all other roads are 
 false. Therefore it is essential that members of The 
 Secret Doctrine study groups should pursue devoutly 
 the Life of Purity. Not only is individual study neces- 
 sary, but the students, to obtain real results, should 
 earnestly, zealously and devotedly attempt to live the 
 necessary life of Purity, of Self-Abnegation and of 
 Brotherliness. Let the student bring to his study class 
 pure and upright forces of life, chastened intelligence 
 and real desire to learn the Living Truth of the Masters 
 of Life. With a single eye fixed upon the Lords of 
 Light and Love, with humility but with sure confi- 
 dence let him go forward, steadfast and persistent, un- 
 til he passes from the Great Book to the Living Reality 
 behind it. 
 
 20
 
 "These two volumes only constitute the 
 work of a pioneer zvho has forced his zvay 
 into the zvell-nigh impenetrable jungle of the 
 virgin forests of the Land of the Occult. A 
 commencement has been made to fell and up- 
 root the deadly upas trees of superstition, pre- 
 judice and conceited ignorance, so that these 
 tzvo volumes should form for the student a 
 fitting prelude for Volumes III and IV. Until 
 the rubbish of the ages is cleared away from 
 the minds of the Thcosophists to whom these 
 volumes arc dedicated, it is impossible that 
 the more practical teaching contained in the 
 third Volume should be understood. Conse- 
 quently, it entirely depends upon the reception 
 zvith which Volumes I and II zmll meet at the 
 hands of Thcosophists and Mystics, whether 
 these last tzvo volumes will ever be published, 
 though they are almost completed." 
 Secret Doctrine, 
 
 Vol. II, pages 797-798 (Ed. 1888), 
 
 21
 
 A SYSTEMATIC COURSE OF READING 
 
 ari'anged by 
 
 THE THEOSOPHICAL ASSOCIATION OF 
 NEW YORK. 
 
 Key to Theosophy 
 
 Ocean of Theosophy 
 
 Popular Lectures on Theosophy 
 
 Echoes from the Orient 
 
 The Occult World 
 
 In the Outer Court 
 
 The Science of the Emotions 
 
 A Study in Consciousness 
 
 Isis Unveiled 
 
 The Secret Doctrine 
 
 H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 Wm. Q. Judge 
 
 Annie Bcsant 
 
 Wm. Q. Judge 
 
 A. P. Sinnett 
 
 Annie Besant 
 
 Bhagavan Das 
 
 Annie Besant 
 
 H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 The Bhagavad Gita 
 The Bhagavad Gita 
 Notes on the Gita 
 Doctrine of the Heart 
 Light on the Path 
 Practical Occultism 
 The Voice of the Silence 
 
 Annie Besant 
 
 Wm. Q. Judge 
 
 Wm. Q. Judge 
 
 Annie Besant 
 
 Mabel Collins 
 
 H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 H. P. Blavatsky 
 
 These books can be obtained at the Headquarters 
 of The Theosophical Association 230 Madison 
 Avenue, New York Citv.
 
 rA.-j-.M;--yv!;:vM 
 
 •V.^M.-.^-^,.,:v.-V-.,--.:.Vr 
 
 ■:'v.,,'<-^';-,.i.-r,':Mf..»v5t^i 
 
 «-r,.:,.f.^%.^i^- 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY 
 
 Los Angeles 
 This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. 
 
 MAY 1 6 1980 
 
 50m-7,'69(N296s4) — C-120
 
 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 AA 000 385 223
 
 ■VV 
 
 tK^ 
 
 •:;.5-*':5;l