Truly though, Atlantis is pretty well documented ...
I believe that the Atlantis mentioned in Plato's book is a genuine historical island west of the Pillars of Hercules (i.e. the Atlas mountains of Morocco and Gibraltar). I long ago became convinced that the flood spoken of was simply the flood of Noah.
On this issue, I think we have some form of agreement. I believe the Noah account is, along with many other stories, a mythic reckoning of Atlantis. Blavatsky asserts that Atlantis, before its sinking, was engulfed in black magic and other forms of depravity.
Now, for
Theosophy Unveiled :
I skipped over the Archimandrite's comments about the Luciferian-Illuminati-Mason conspiracy because I think it really detracts from the publication. The responses below are more or less my main points of contention with at least the first quarter (though if you are interested, I can finish the rest later this week).
She had no friends!
While her childhood was certainly more bookish than most, this statement is without source and truth. Blavatsky was known to play with the servant's children quite frequently and maintained a wonderful relationship with her sister throughout her entire life.
the family was also related to the known Russian author, Helena Fadeyeva (pen-name "Zeneida R-va")
Not a correction on my part, but it is worth pointing out that Helena Fadeyeva is HPB's mother.
Frictions started with her family and parents
Again, no source provided. Most allegations about "family friction" come from Marion Meade's biography on Blavatsky,
Madame Blavatsky: The Woman Behind the Myth. Meade suggestion of "tension" was rooted entirely in her own imagination. When Blavatsky's letters were published yeas later, Meade's thesis was discounted. The letters actually showed the existence of a rather positive and loving relationship between HPB and her family. HPB's sister's writings only further bolster this idea.
Shortly after her wedding with Blavatsky, she abandoned him and disappeared. She was very eccentric and had a great inclination towards occultism, spiritualism, and magic.
It should be pointed out here that her "abandoning" of Governor Blavatsky only took place after months of escape attempts. She was, in short, held against her will.
She became acquainted with Colonel Olcott there. He was a medium and occupied himself with spiritualism
While Colonel Olcott was most certainly involved (at least initially) in spiritualism, this is the first time I have ever heard him called a medium. Are there any references or proof for this?
The Theosophical Society made tremendous progress with abundant money coming in from an unknown source.
"Abundant money" and "Theosophical Society" are two words I would never have put together in the same sentence. Blavatsky and her Society survived quite meagerly.
Shortly after, Blavatsky would publish the Theosophical periodical "Lucifer in London.
Not to be terribly "nitpicky" but Blavatsky did not begin publishing Lucifer until after leaving India (1887), nearly ten years after her New York depature.
Blavatsky and Pike collectively decided to create a female Masonic Lodge comprised of the wives, sisters and daughters of Freemasons.
I have never heard of a "female Masonic Lodge" created by her and Pike. It would be nice if the Archimandrite would provide sources for these claims...
She imposed Pike to implement spiritualism
Nonsense. Anyone only slightly familiar with Theosophy and the Theosophical Society knows that from the beginning it opposed (and quite vocally) spiritualism. In
Isis Unveiled,
The Key to Theosophy,
Lucifer magazine, etc. etc. there is no group more attacked by Blavatsky than that of the spiritualists. HPB goes to painstaking lengths to describe the dangers in necromancy, seances, channeling, etc. (Spiritualists, Blavatsky insists, delve into many things beyond their understanding).
Satanist German Jew Helena Blavatsky
What?
I don't really know how to respond to this one. The Archimandrite's antisemitic undertones aside, how did he arrive at this description? What is a satanist (and how is Blavatsky, a person who not only encouraged moral excellence and selflessness, but rejected the literal existence of such beings [Satan], one of them)? Also, when did she become Jewish?
He goes on to suggest that she met Karl Marx, which, if it did happen, is largely irrelevant considering the Madame spurned politics and political theory.
Madame Blavatsky was, at that time, herself a believer in spiritism and claimed to belong to the school of Allan Kardec, from whom she preserved certain ideas, notably those concerning reincarnation
Actually, Blavatsky's "ideas" on reincarnation are quite different from Kardec's (she criticizes his school in her writings). The French spiritualists did not have a concept of Karma (which is essential to a Theosophical understanding of reincarnation) nor did they believe in a time interval between incarnations (in Theosophy, this is sometimes thousands of years in Devachan).
This is because in the Madras periodical "Christian College" and in the periodical "Society for Psychical Research" the miracles of Adyar were shown to be fake and fraudulent.
Dr. Richard Hodgson‘s relevant research acted on behalf of the Society for Psychical Research. In his related report, he mentions that the supposed letters of Mahatmas that Blavatsky received from the afterlife, and contained their messages, were written by Blavatsky herself either personally or dictated by her.
Two of her colleagues, K.H. and Coulomb, admitted they collaborated in the development of Blavatsky‘s miracles.
Indeed, Blavatsky herself was also forced to admit with much artlessness if not cynicism that it was necessary to act in this deceitful manner in order for the propagation of her ideas to succeed.
Alright, here we go (and I knew this part was coming - it's in every "refutation" of Theosophy). Lets discuss this in a bit greater detail.
Firstly, Theosophy believes in no miracles.
Secondly, Blavatsky never once suggested the Mahatma letters came from the afterlife (Theosophy denies that such contact with the afterlife is possible), but from real and living Masters.
Thirdly, Koot Hoomi (who I can only assume the Archimandrite means when he says K.H.) certainly did not speak out against Blavatsky (seeing as he was one of the Mahatmas)
Finally, the occult phenomena were hardly disproved and I will tell you why. The Coulombs, who had been aboard a ship with Blavatsky decades ago, had helped HPB financially following the loss of her possessions (the ship sank). Blavatsky later assisted them when they found themselves in dire straits. Blavatsky provided the Coulombs with a living in India, but the couple eventually betrayed her trust. In truth, they bit the hand that fed them. The leaders of the Christian College paid a decent amount for the performance of a stunt they felt would "ruin Blavatsky" (who's efforts in India had severely hindered their missionary efforts). The Coulombs agreed to construct a number of panels and trapdoors in the Madame's quarters (who was in London/Paris at the time). Aside from the fact that much of her phenomena could not be accomplished by means of trapdoors (such as those preformed outdoors, as well as those involving the disruption of gravity, etc.), there are a number of factors that should at least cause us to doubt the Coulomb testimonies. Not only did the other member of the Society notice noises coming from the Madame's room over the preceding weeks, but the members of the Christian College visited the Adyar Headquarters the day after the Coulombs had finished their "construction work", asking for a "tour" of the facility. An independent investigator later confirmed the additions to be recent in origin.
Of course, the SPR has since rejected the Hodgeson Report (in 1986) not only because his only real source was the Coulomb testimonies (which have since been discredited), but because his conclusion was lunacy (that the TS was Blavatsky's cover for her occupation as a Russian spy).
Folks, for a good Blavatsky biography, I would recommend Sylvia Cranston's
HPBP.S. While my comments on this topic are quite critical, I do appreciate your postings, Dionysii. You give quite a bit of food for thought
