The Washington herald., 1914-04-26
THEOSOPHY, WHY
AND WHA! It IS
Washingtonian Describes the
Aims of "Apotheosis Of
Common Sense"
STILLS, HUNGRY SOULS
Answers Many Riddles of Life and
Invites Adherents of All Sects
and Creeds.
BY DIR. w. w. BAKER.
ny
Mhat is theosophY?

by DIR. w. w. BAKER.
What is theosophy?
The term, put little known until the
formation of The Theosophical Society in
1875. has come in recent years into more
general use, but even now, when that
society has grown to a membership Of
nearly 5000, with approximately 1000
branches in all parts of the world, the
word carries but little significance to the
ears of the majority of persons.
What Theosophy is can best be ex-
pressed, perhaps, By elimination, by a
statement of what 1t is not. 1t is alone
neither philosophy. religion, science, art
nor any other division of human activity.
II is a synthesis Of all these. and more.
1t is a conception of the universe, and
its inhabitants, their past, present. and
future; and a body of facts supporting
these conceptions painstakingly gathered
throughout the ages and still in process
Of collection. 1t might truly be said,
in fact, that Theosophy is the ocean OF
knowledge from which all investigators
are dipping as deeply as they may, each
after his own method. The term is of
Greek origin and means Divine Wis
DOM"
Points Out Difference.
Here the difference must be made clear
between Thosophy and the Theosophica.
Society. The former is a vast fund of
knowledge passed down through the ages
from the hands of one body of curators
to those of another. Religions have given
forth some of its truths in parallels TO
the uninitiated. in plain terms to serious
students. The ancient mysteries of
Greece furnished other gateways to its
truths Masonry also has been a chan
mel for its teachings, and the Theoso-
phical Society is but another. This So
ciety, which may be looked upon as
curator of and a gateway to Theosophy.
is made up of body of students banded
together because of their belief in the
universal brotherhood of humanity. and
interested in the study of man and his
latent powers. the unexplained laws of
nature. and the light thrown on these
things by the comparative study of re-
ligion, philosophy and science. The
students who constitute the TheosophiCal
Society differ in capacity and ability, but
recognizing the graded nature of the sys-
TEN and its many departments. they be-
gin with elementary considerations and
work just as far into the Intricacies which
surround the riddle of the universe as
their interests and abilities will carry
them.
Trying to Reach Truth
The Thcosophical Society emphasizes
the fact that il is not anything COM
parable to a sect holding out dogmas
and creeds which must be accepted. 1t
strives always to reach its ideal as a
hand OF tolerant. broad-minded students
intent only upon reaching the truth The
fund of knowledge constituting Theoso-
ply is accessible to them and they may
institute Investigations of their own. but
nothing is put forward as dogma. There
is no cry of the heresy at those who differ
from others in their beliefs and conclu-
sions. All CT its material the society lays
before an individual TO be tried at the
triple bar of his intellect. his reason, his
conscience. and to be accepted or re-
jected as he sees fit.
The society exists for individuals
with hungry minds and souls who, in
their intellectual and spiritual life, are
satisfied neither with the Grass ma
terialism of our commercial age which
ignores the important questions of
life, its meaning and what follows its
apparent cessation. nor with the un-
questioning acceptance of one of many
warning faiths. many of the adherents
of which believe that their creed alone
is right and all others wrong. The
Society sees some of the
Inconsistencies of all religions and
schools of philosophy. but, realizing
that there must be some truth at the
source of all of them. seeks to find and
reach the center of the diamond. OF
which ordinarily only the many sur
faces are seen.
All Sects Represented.
That is has gone far toward the ac- !
of this aim is proved by |
the fact that members of Christianity, |
Hindooism. Zoroastrianism, |
and many other reli- |
gions meet in brotherhood in the Theo- |
sophical Society. and find opened up
through il truths in their own faiths |
Of which they were before but dimly |
conscious. This they have accom- !
plished through a study of the mass |
nf information found in Theosophy, and |
through original investigation con-
cerning fields OF intellect and spirit
not yet familiar in ordinary life.
To some studiOus minds the society |
has in a way taken the place of A spe-
cifc faith by becoming a synthesis of |
the truths found in all of them. but 20
the great majority of members it has
been merely an interpreter and light
bearer, bringing out the inner truths of
their own faiths and corralling them
with science, philosophy, art. and
ethics.
One of the widest appeals of theosophy
IS in the fact that it recognizes that
there are different types of personality
and that here are lines of development
best adapted to each. From its vast
of knowledge, accumulated
through the ages and still being added
%, may be taken information along the
rery lines which are most useful and
most interesting to the individual stu
lent, and best fitted to his needs In
,ther words theosOphy holds out to
humanity several paths which lead those
who follow them ever closer to the one
goal: through evolution, experience
yrowth, and development, ultimately TO
Individual and collective perfection.
Though an inadequate suggestion of
Is scope, it may be well in 4 general
such as this to say a few
words of theosophy in some of its as
oects, keeping in mind that all these
aspects are interrelated parts of whole
Its Aims and Ideals.
AS a religion theosophy searches out the
Underlying truths of all religions in their
original and uncontam!nated forms, and
inds them to be component parts of one