The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-06-17

turtles past, earnest, but feeble efforts
have been made in Europe to spread
It's knowledge. The theosophists affirm
that while under cyclic laws prevail
sng in the course of evolution. ii was in
evEable that those unavailing efforts
should he made. their futili1y was well
known beforehand to the lofty intelli-
gence-variously styled adopts
masters, 'iaTahats. ma llatr4as-' or
''rishis' who are the observators of
the ancient wisdom, and whose mission
IL is TO eventually make it the COM
mon knowledge of the human race
But the present era. the last quarter
of this nineteenth century. was known
10 them as the time when the world
would be ripe for receiving these
truths and SO far accepting them that
d permanent barrier would be raised
against the avalanche of materialism
which threatened to crush spirituality
out Of the heart of the race. just why
this particular point in time should
have been fixed upon. this ending of
one of the secondary cycles in the
kali .yuga, or dark age $50 called
because in it the dominate of matter
over spirit is greatest, would be diff
cult of explanation without such philo-
sophie and metaphysical elaboration as
you'd be out of place in this article
(But, in an age wherein things are
? judged solely by their results, the wis
dom Of selecting will hardly admit Of
question. when the achievements and
present status of theosophy are real
lied Already. five years ago the emin-
er1t French author. Burnouf, recognized
the theosophic as one of the three
great movements of the world And
its spread, since then, has been aston
iShing, its influences stupendous. When
ABRAMS ernents were making for the
parliament of religions in Chicago. only
a small hall, one of the smallest. was
assigned to the theosophists That
will be as much as they can fill" was
said. But it was speedily found that
the vast Hall of Washington their
largest, was insufficient to hold the
thousands interested in the new cult,
and another of the big halls had 10 be
given for an overflow meeting. The
snoident was significent and illustrative
f5f -the. place theosophy has made for
Itself among The worlds beliefs
The agent employed by the Adopts
to Start the movement in the western
Herld-accepting the fheosopnic view
of ieHents-was Helena P. Blavatsky. a.
Russian woman, endowed with mighty
energy, indomitable will, indefatiga bic
perseverance and truly wondrous re-
sources Of learning. Many persons con-
verSant with her extraordinary DOW
eTs. credited her with q high degree OF
BdeptShip. but she never admitted that
she was anything more than a, "chela"
OR student-assigned as a messenger
10 do the masters will 1t is not easy
u ina CINE that her great books Isis
Unveiled and The Secret Doctrine
were the work of any woman. or in
deed of any human mind even the
most cultured known in all ages. and
there seems 20 be in them at least in
aerent probability Of inspiration from
the mysterious source 10 which she
credited all aer work.
The first meeting for organization of
q. theosop'hicai society was held in New
York on September S. 1870. w. @
Judge. nov general secretary of the
American section Of the society, was
temporary chairman of that meeting.
at which only sixteen persons were
present. and upon his motion Colonel
Henry S. Olcott was made permanent
chairman-and subsequently president
of the society. Now, in little over
eighteen years, the society has 800 ac-
tive branches lin America, Sc: Eu-
rope, IS; Australia, Is; Asia, 175). and
in addition. SO "cen1ers,'' or nuclei of
branches. New ones are also forming
constantiy in all parts of the world.
But the number of avowed believers in
the philosophy taught as thecsophic is
: DIV no means limited TO the member
snip in the society, which is conlpar-
atively small, while those whose pre-
conceived -beilelS nave Deel l0SenSiDiE
modified and moulded 10 conforrni "
with its teachings, are yet more nu-
1nerous Infinitely various reasons ex-
igt in many minds for hesitancy in
orenly assuming the responsibility of
belonging to an organization which is
in some regards a radical departure
from orthodoxy, but the enormous de-
1rsnd for theosophic literature. the
large audiences attracted TO exposi-
lions Of tlleosopflic beliefs by public
SPEAKERS. and the very noticeable in
6Ruence Of these teachings upon pulpit
Tutterances. literary thought and even
direction of scientific research, ALI evi-
dence5 thai the worlds interest finds no
measure OF expression in the growth of