For a long time, in the folklore and beliefs of India, information has been preserved about the presence in the inaccessible Himalayas of a secret colony of sages - Great Initiates or Mahatmas - who periodically descend to people to provide this or that help at critical moments in their lives.
Under the "patronage" of the sages
It is believed that the founder of the Theosophical Society, H. P. Blavatsky, introduced Europeans to the Mahatmas and to the entire Indian culture. Studying her biography, you can find out that since childhood she had in her visions a certain noble man in a turban, and as an adult, she personally met him in London. It was from that very moment that she periodically communicated with two representatives of this higher community in relation to people - Mahatma Kut Hoomi and Mahatma Morya. Under the “patronage” of the mentioned sages, she created the Theosophical Society, the main purpose of which was to become acquainted with the ideas of the Higher Mind, as well as to restore the union of science, religion and philosophy that people had lost.
Through Blavatsky, who was a kind of “resident” of the mysterious community of sages, an attempt was made to correspond between the Mahatmas and two educated Europeans - professor of ornithology Hume and editor of the Pioneer newspaper Sinnett. The result of this epistolary contact, which lasted several years, was republished many times in different languages, including Russian, in a voluminous volume called “Letters of the Mahatmas.” The originals of some of these letters are kept in the Manuscripts Department of the British Museum.
Blavatsky's "Secret Doctrine"
As Blavatsky herself claimed, her two main books - “Isis Unveiled” and “The Secret Doctrine” - were written entirely psychographically, that is, “under the dictation” of the above-mentioned Mahatmas, and therefore her own merit in completing these works, as she believed, “ there wasn’t and there isn’t.” However, Western science treated Blavatsky's reports about the presence of a mysterious country in the Himalayas called Shambhala and about its inhabitants, the Mahatmas, with great distrust.
The so-called phenomena or, in other words, materializations that she carried out to convince skeptics did not help either: she took out sweets or bouquets of flowers “out of nowhere”, the ghosts of long-dead people appeared to her, and under her pillow there were letters from those same Mahatmas. When asked how this could be, Blavatsky replied that all this was the fruit of the activities of the Himalayan philosophers, and she was only an intermediary in the experiments. However, this did not convince Western scientists, who perceived the materializations as sleight of hand and tricks of Blavatsky herself...
The result of the “triumph” of the European style of thinking was the “exposure” of Blavatsky as an ordinary swindler, carried out with the help of clever adventurers, Blavatsky’s former servants, the Coulomb spouses...
And only in our time, the London Society for Psychical Research, having re-analyzed the “facts” presented by the Coulombs, came to the final conclusion: all the phenomena demonstrated by Blavatsky were the pure truth, and these servants of hers turned out to be swindlers...
Further contacts with the Great Initiates
The creator of Agni Yoga, E. I. Roerich, also saw her astral teacher. Around 1907-1909, Elena Ivanovna received a vision that shocked her. One night she woke up from an unusually strong light and saw a stranger in the bedroom, from whom very strong psychic vibrations emanated. The impression was so deep that Elena Ivanovna even thought about her imminent death. However, after some time, this emotion receded, replaced by an amazing feeling of the descent of a Higher Power. The fact that her experiences were not a hallucination was confirmed later when Elena Ivanovna met with her teacher in a normal setting.
In a similar way, the famous mystic and founder of her own school, Alice Bailey, had a date with Mahatma Koot Hoomi. On June 30, 1895, when she was still a very young girl, a man walked into the living room where she was alone. stranger tall with an Indian turban on his head. The guest did not introduce himself, but stated that Alice had been designated by some higher community to perform a special job, but only with her consent and complete self-control. The most surprising thing is that Alice immediately believed him and agreed. The mysterious visitor disappeared as quickly as he appeared, warning that he would continue to appear in a similar way at intervals of several years. Alice Bailey later communicated with Mahatma Koot Hoomi solely telepathically.
What we found out about the Mahatmas
It is known that spiritually outstanding people appeared on the horizon of history from time to time, left their mark on the minds of people and disappeared into physical oblivion. The most significant in this sense, the so-called Great Initiates, are considered to be the founders of world religions - Buddha, Krishna, Moses, Christ, Mohammed, as well as the founders of some philosophical schools and esoteric teachings - Hermes, Pythagoras, Plato and others.
The Great Initiates also include two Indian sages - Koot Hoomi, a former Kashmiri Brahmin, and Morya, a former Indian prince. It is believed that initially they were not recluses at all. Koot Hoomi, for example, traveled all over the world and received two higher educations - in Oxford and in Leipzig. Unfortunately, there is almost no information about Mahatma Morya, despite the fact that he is the highest leader of the Mahatma Koot Hoomi.
Mysterious Shambhala
This country, the seat of the Mahatmas, is, as is commonly believed, in the sky-high Himalayas. According to legends, it was there that young Jesus Christ received his first knowledge during his visit to India. In subsequent years, many seekers of occult secrets, travelers and simply adventurers tried to penetrate this sanctuary of the sages, but to no avail. Even H. P. Blavatsky and N. K. Roerich failed to do this, although, as it was believed, they were envoys of Shambhala and repeatedly met with the Mahatmas in another place. The British authorities did not even allow them into Tibet, considering them Russian spies.
The French explorer A. David-Neel barely penetrated Lhasa, central city Tibet, because due to her excellent knowledge of the Tibetan language and customs, she was accepted as one of their own, but she never managed to see Shambhala. As is known, the Nazis were also searching for the mysterious country.
Most parapsychologists believe that Shambhala is inaccessible to mere mortals, since it is located in transcendental space and is protected from the uninitiated magical signs. So, for example, N. Roerich, while traveling in Tibet, saw a shiny object flying over the site of the proposed Shambhala, which today would be described as a UFO.
A. Vyatkin, parapsychologist
"Pros and cons"
Almost a century and a half has passed since Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1830-1891) revealed to the world the teachings of Theosophy, created on the basis of esoteric philosophical sources from India and Tibet previously unknown to science. The new teaching, with its fundamentality, originality and breadth of problems, attracted the attention of the general public; Many representatives of the scientific community of Western countries also became interested in it. Based on the works published by Blavatsky, a theosophical movement arose in the West, which soon spread throughout Europe.
Of course, not all representatives of Western society accepted the new teaching with enthusiasm. Since Theosophy had a clearly defined spiritual and moral orientation and was positioned by Blavatsky as a “synthesis of science, religion and philosophy,” conservative clerical circles in the West saw it as a dangerous competitor to the church and tried to do everything to discredit it - together with Blavatsky herself, of course.
E.P. Blavatsky, however, did not attribute the merit of creating a new teaching to herself alone: she argued that the true creators of Theosophy were the keepers of the traditions of esoteric (secret) spiritual wisdom of India and Tibet, unknown to the Western world - the spiritual Teachers, or Mahatmas (“Great Souls”). One of them, Mahatma M., was her direct spiritual mentor.
As Elena Petrovna reported, the abode of the Mahatmas, or spiritual Teachers of the East, exists in remote areas of the Himalayas; it is not accessible to ordinary people. Spiritual Teachers of the East resolutely refuse to communicate with people from outside world, but agree to share their knowledge with them, sending their employees to them, one of whom was E.P. herself. Blavatsky.
According to Blavatsky, Mahatmas have unusual (paranormal) psychic and spiritual abilities; thanks to them, they developed a special, non-rational way of understanding the world around them, atypical for Western science. This method of cognition allowed Indian yogi philosophers to gain deep knowledge in the field of hidden (inaccessible to experimental research) properties of nature, man and the Cosmos.
But perhaps the main difference between the Mahatmas and ordinary people was not so much their amazing spiritual and psychic abilities as their high level moral development, due to which the Mahatmas saw the main goal of their life and work in comprehensive assistance to the spiritual evolution of people all over the world.
To confirm the fact that Mahatmas do have extraordinary knowledge of the secrets of nature and paranormal abilities, H.P. Blavatsky herself from time to time demonstrated phenomenal manifestations in public, in particular, the so-called materialization - the appearance of objects literally out of thin air or their equally paranormal disappearance before the eyes of others. Many scientists of that era wanted to see these “phenomena” with their own eyes, being confident that, unlike gullible onlookers, they would certainly be able to convict Blavatsky, who produced them, of deception, but, having visited unusual woman, pundits were baffled by what they saw...
This was probably the same reaction of modern scientists exploring the paranormal abilities of the Indian guru Sathya Sai Baba by analyzing the videos they filmed. Sai Baba was much luckier than our compatriot - he lived in the era of the existence of video cameras that captured the miracles he performed, thereby making it possible to verify their truth. And if Blavatsky’s enemies declared her abilities to be fake, then few people made such accusations against Sai Baba - slow-motion video filming impartially demonstrated to skeptics the phenomenon of materialization in all its inexplicable power: the objects materialized by the miracle worker actually came into being from space, and not from anywhere. something from the sleeve of a famous guru.
Blavatsky's ideas, as well as her paranormal abilities, split public opinion in the Western world into two camps. For some, theosophical ideas aroused interest and inspiration, while for others - skepticism and irritation. Someone believed what Blavatsky said, but someone not only did not believe it, but also declared her a charlatan.
Thus, the idea of the existence in the East of a community of spiritual Teachers possessing unusual knowledge marked the beginning of a powerful wave of disputes, discussions, ideological confrontation, and with all this, unabated interest in the phenomenon that in the West began to be called the White Brotherhood, and in the East from ancient times was called Shambhala .
After Blavatsky’s death, the idea of the real existence of the Himalayan community of hermit-yogis, the spiritual Teachers of the world, was impressively reflected in their work by Helen and Nicholas Roerich. The Roerichs brought to the world a new philosophical teaching of the Mahatmas - Agni Yoga, or Living Ethics. Official science believes that it was the Roerichs who were the authors of this teaching, but Helena and Nicholas Roerich themselves claimed that the texts of Agni Yoga were transmitted to them by their spiritual Teachers. The spiritual and philosophical heritage of the Roerichs was for the time being little known due to Soviet censorship, but during the perestroika years the teaching of Agni Yoga came out of hiding. And it flared up again public interest to the ideas transmitted to the world by the same unknown Mahatmas, and discussions and debates began again. As in the time of Blavatsky, sharply critical works appeared, with the goal of not giving an objective assessment of the new teaching, but rather discrediting its ideas, and at the same time belittling the importance of the cultural and educational activities of the Roerichs, which were undoubtedly progressive in their essence. At the same time, disputes regarding the authors of Agni Yoga - Himalayan adept-philosophers unknown to the world - flared up with renewed vigor...
So does this phenomenon exist or not? What is the Himalayan Brotherhood - a common myth? Embodied in a beautiful legend the eternal dream of humanity about the Perfect Man and harmonious society free and noble workers?
This can only be understood on the basis of an impartial, objective analysis of the facts, of which there are many today. But - what a paradox! - when it comes to the idea of the real existence of Mahatmas, for some reason few people succeed in impartial analysis. Noteworthy is the fact that the assessment of the spiritual heritage of the Roerichs and Blavatsky by many modern publicists often turns out to be devoid of objectivity and healthy criticism. Other followers of the Roerichs and Blavatsky praise them to the skies, but at the same time attribute unusual tendencies to them, thereby profaning their views. On the other hand, many critics, instead of giving an objective assessment of the ideas of Blavatsky and the Roerichs, for some reason strive to falsify these ideas and thereby go as far as direct slander against our undoubtedly outstanding compatriots. This is where strange negative assessments of Blavatsky and the Roerichs come from, as creators of harmful myths that allegedly powder good people brain.
Such assessments, oddly enough, are also resorted to by other representatives of the scientific community, who by their very status should approach any problems of history objectively, impartially and balancedly. Thus, Doctor of Historical Sciences A. Andreev, and then a whole group of authors united by him, sharply condemned the myths composed, in his opinion, by Blavatsky and the Roerichs about the Mahatmas. A. Andreev called the Theosophists’ assertion about the existence in the Himalayas of a community of philosophers and spiritual figures of the East that had departed from the world a “theosophical myth.” Literally, translated from Greek, “myth” means “word, legend, tradition.” It should be noted right away that if in an ordinary, everyday meaning myth is understood as a fairy tale, legend, artistic fiction (and in a negative sense - as ignorant or deliberately false ideas about something), then in a philosophical context the concept of myth has a completely different meaning. It is no coincidence that in philosophical science there is a separate area - the philosophy of myth, because mythology is part of world culture. But A. Andreev put into the concept of “theosophical myth” he invented not a philosophical, but a philistine context, and even with a negative meaning, interpreting in in this case myth is not just a “legend” or “legend”, but rather a delusion or deception. It is no coincidence that A. Andreev calls all the information about Shambhala available in the works of Blavatsky and the Roerichs not only “fantasized”, but also “falsified”.
It seems, however, that the point of view of Mr. Andreev and his like-minded people is far from objective, and in two aspects at once. Firstly, the community of spiritual Teachers of the East, about whom both Blavatsky and the Roerichs wrote, may turn out to be not only a myth - in the purely philosophical sense of the word - but also a reality. And secondly, even if we consider the idea of Shambhala only as a myth, it is still unclear why A. Andreev and his like-minded people give this myth a negative meaning and consider it a delusion harmful to society? In the end, both Blavatsky and the Roerichs in their writings presented Shambhala as a perfect society of highly spiritually developed individuals who devoted their lives to working for the benefit of humanity. Just think - on our planet there exists, albeit a very small, but still real community, living according to the covenant: “Love your neighbor as yourself”; members of this community do not deceive anyone, do not exploit, do not quarrel with each other, do not envy or hate each other, and the main goal of their life is to study the secrets of nature and help the spiritual evolution of the main part of humanity...
What harm could there be in such an idea, even if we assume that it is just a myth? How right was E.I. Roerich, who wrote to her followers: “...teach joy to those who come to you. Joy in learning about the existence of the Stronghold of Light. Joy that humanity’s deepest dream is truly embodied here on Earth.”
T. Mora's Utopia Island and Campanella's City of the Sun never existed in reality, but no one has ever thought of declaring these myths harmful to society. What did A. Andreev do wrong with a similar image that has existed since ancient times in both Eastern and Western folklore? Only because it was subsequently interpreted by Blavatsky and the Roerichs as a phenomenon that exists in reality?
But what if we assume that Shambhala is not only a myth, but also a real phenomenon? Are the claims that there is a community of hermit philosophers hidden from the world in the Himalayas really so fantastic?
Shambhala as reality
When getting acquainted, on the one hand, with the works of A. Andreev, and on the other hand, with the teachings of Blavatsky and the Roerichs, it becomes quite obvious that neither A. Andreev nor any of their opponents managed to prove that communities of spiritual Teachers The East has never existed as a historical reality - and cannot exist in principle. In our opinion, there is nothing implausible in the idea of the existence of Mahatmas.
Anticipating the skepticism of the Western public regarding the reality of the existence of a community of philosophers closed to the uninitiated in the Himalayas, the Mahatmas reported in one of the books of Agni Yoga: “...When you read about the discovery of dinosaur eggs, you easily accept the message. You will just as easily accept a message about a new species of monkey; about the viability of grains in pyramid tombs; about an unknown metal; about a new tribe of descendants of shipwrecked people. You will accept a whole series of messages coming from your everyday life easily.
Why is it difficult to accept that a group that has acquired knowledge through hard work can unite in the name of the Common Good? Experienced knowledge helped to find comfortable spot, where currents make it easier to communicate in different directions.
You, of course, have heard stories from travelers about finding unknown yogis in caves. If you continue this fact in the direction of vast effective knowledge, you will easily reach the feeling of a group of Teachers of Knowledge."
Obviously, of everything that Blavatsky told the world about the Mahatmas, the greatest distrust (especially from representatives of science) should have been caused by the second point, namely the paranormal psychospiritual abilities of the Teachers of the East and their possession of unique knowledge of the surrounding world, in certain directions superior to the achievements of Western experimental science. Sciences.
However, if you approach this issue with an open mind, there is nothing anti-scientific in the very idea of the existence in the Himalayas of a community of yogis possessing unusual psychic powers. After all, the existence of people with paranormal abilities is a fact proven by science; the unusual capabilities of Indian yogis is another equally well-known fact in the West. If persistent training according to a system that has been developed over many centuries can give people phenomenal physical abilities, then why cannot there be a similar training of mental abilities with the achievement of corresponding results?
The fact of the Mahatmas’ unusual knowledge - especially in the field of the psycho-spiritual nature of man - is also not so fantastic. The history of bygone civilizations is fraught with many mysteries. Nowadays, it is widely known that some ancient civilizations possessed knowledge and advanced technologies that were unusual for their era (in particular, those used in the construction of pyramids and other “wonders of the world”).
The scientific ideas and visions contained in ancient Indian philosophy were also noted by outstanding scientists of our era. Academician Vernadsky in his work “Noosphere” wrote: “In the history of philosophical thought, already many centuries before our era, we find intuitions and constructions that can be associated with scientific empirical conclusions, if we transfer these thoughts that have reached us - intuitions - into the realm of real scientific facts of our time. (...) Some of the philosophical quests of India (...) - the philosophy of the Upanishads - can be interpreted in this way if they are transferred to the field of science of the twentieth century."
Thus, on the basis of facts known to science, one cannot conclude that what Blavatsky and the Roerichs told about the Himalayan Brotherhood of Hermits is, as A. Andreev claims, a hoax and not a real phenomenon.
In addition, in the annals of the theosophical movement there is a lot of evidence and artifacts of the very real, “earthly” activity of the Mahatmas. All these arguments contradict the statements of A. Andreev that “on the earthly plane the Mahatmas do not reveal their presence in any way,” and therefore they can be attributed the status of “otherworldly forces” in which, in his opinion, theosophists believed.
If we analyze a number of facts from the history of the Theosophical movement carefully and impartially, it becomes obvious that there are many weighty arguments in favor of the real existence in the East of a group of philosophers and yoga adepts with unusual psychic abilities and knowledge. As they say, facts are stubborn things. That is why, without pretending to somehow influence the reader’s opinion, we would like in this article to present a number of facts that speak in favor of the real existence of Mahatmas.
Eyewitness accounts
The first argument in favor of the real existence of spiritual Teachers in the East is the testimony of people who personally saw the Mahatmas or even communicated with them. As is known, in any controversial issues, even in legal proceedings, such a factor as witness testimony is taken into account. Among contemporaries E.P. Blavatsky - and not only members of the Theosophical Society - there were quite a lot of people who witnessed the real existence of the Mahatmas, that is, who literally saw them with their own eyes. We deliberately do not include here the testimony of H.P. herself. Blavatsky and her closest collaborator G.S. Olcott, who may be considered biased due to the active role they played in the Theosophical movement. But we cannot ignore the testimony of quite a large number of other witnesses from among people interested in theosophical ideas, especially when we consider that most of them belonged to British high society and would hardly risk their reputation by deceiving someone, and for unknown reasons .
IN different time their meetings with the Mahatmas or the facts of their real appearances before a limited circle of people were confirmed (even in writing) by both many members of the Theosophical Society and non-members who were interested in occult phenomenal manifestations. The names of people who left such evidence, as well as their memories, are given in theosophical literature: “Letters of the Mahatmas”, books by J. Barborka “Mahatmas and Their Teachings”, V. Hanson “Mahatmas and Humanity”, Sinnett “The Occult World”, etc. ., as well as in the memoirs of contemporaries E.P. Blavatsky, who belonged to theosophical circles. These are Ramaswamy, Ross Scott, W. Eglinton, W. Brown, F. Arundale and many others.
As an example, let us cite just one case that happened with the Englishman W. Eglinton, who was not a member of the Theosophical Society and did not believe in the existence of Mahatmas, but was interested in theosophical teaching. Eglinton specially came from London to India to not only study the basics of Theosophy, but to understand whether the existence of Mahatmas was true or a hoax. One of the Masters, Mahatma Koot Hoomi, who played a particularly active role in the creation of the Theosophical Society, provided Eglinton with convincing evidence of the reality of his existence. To this end, Mahatma Koot Hoomi suddenly appeared before Eglinton, demonstrating to him his paranormal abilities, and had a long conversation with him.
After this visit, which took place on March 24, 1882, W. Eglinton wrote a letter to Mrs. Alice Gordon, a member of the Theosophical Society, with whom he was well acquainted. The text of his letter is given in the book by J. Barborka “Mahatmas and Their Teachings”:
"Dear Ms. Gordon,
Your hour of triumph has finally come! After the many battles we had around the table discussing the existence of [Mahatma] K[ut] H[umi], with all my stubborn skepticism regarding miraculous powers which the "Brothers" have, I was inclined to fully believe that such individuals with individual characteristics really exist, and my former skepticism will now be equaled by my persistently unchanging conviction that they exist. I am not allowed to tell you everything I know, but I can say that K[ut] H[umi] appeared before me in person two days ago, and what he told me stunned me. (...)".
Personal testimonies of people who confirmed the real existence in India of spiritual Teachers - yoga adepts with unusual abilities, include a letter signed by 70 (!) of the most authoritative pandits- learned clergymen of India. This letter arose as a protest against the numerous accusations of fraud and deceit brought by the reactionary press against H.E. Blavatsky. The letter was published in the Boston Courier newspaper on July 18, 1886, and it said, in part, that “Mahatmas or Sadhus are not the invention of Madame Blavatsky, but Superior Beings, in whose existence none of the enlightened Hindus no doubt, whom our grandfathers and great-grandfathers knew, with whom even today many Hindus, who have nothing in common with the Theosophical Society, are in constant relations.”
The original text of this letter is given in the mentioned book by J. Barborka and other books on theosophical topics.
The same book by J. Barborka provides evidence from the outstanding German scientist G. Fechner, who also communicated with Mahatma Kut Hoomi, long before Blavatsky’s appearance in the West and the beginning of the Theosophical movement. In one of his letters to the British theosophist, journalist A.P. Sinnett, Mahatma Koot Hoomi mentioned his conversation with G.T. Fechner, a famous German physicist and psychologist, author of many scientific works. According to the Mahatma, he met Fechner at the time when he lived in Germany, receiving higher education in the University.
Sinnett, in turn, informed his compatriot, the English psychologist Charles Massey, that Mahatma Koot Hoomi had met and talked with Fechner. Ch.K. Massey, who was originally a Theosophist but then left the Theosophical movement, was very skeptical about the idea of the existence of Mahatmas. Having heard from Sinnett that Mahatma Koot Hoomi had written to him about his conversation with Fechner, Massey decided to check whether this was really so. To this end, he wrote to Dr. Wernecke, who lived in Weimar, asking him to obtain information from Fechner about this meeting. Wernecke entered into correspondence with Fechner, who was in Leipzig, and received the following answer: “What Mr. Massey inquires about is, in its main features, true. The name of the said Hindu who came to Leipzig was, however, not Koot Hoomi, but Nisi Kanta Chattopadhyaya. In the mid-seventies, he lived for about a year in Leipzig, where he attracted some interest because of his nationality, but in other respects did not particularly stand out. He was introduced to several families and became a member of the Academic Philosophical Society, of which you were also a member, where he once gave a lecture on Buddhism... I also once heard him lecture in private on the situation of women in India. I remember very well how he visited me one day, and although I cannot remember the content of our conversation, his statement that I asked him about the faith of the Hindus is most likely true."
Let us also note that it is not surprising that in Germany Mahatma Koot Hoomi was known under a different name - it is quite possible that Nisi Kanta Chattopadhyaya was his real name, i.e. given at birth, the name under which he studied at the university in Germany, and Kut Hoomi later became the spiritual name adopted by him after joining the Himalayan brotherhood of Adepts.
It goes without saying that H.P. Blavatsky could not have known about the meeting of Mahatma Koot Hoomi with G. Fechner, so this fact is further confirmation that the existence of the Mahatmas was not her invention, as opponents of Theosophy claimed.
Artifacts
The second argument proving the real existence of the Mahatmas are various artifacts associated with their activities, and above all, their messages to Western followers of Theosophy.
One of these artifacts is a telegram sent by Mahatma Koot Hoomi, written by him personally (in that era, the text of telegrams was written by hand). The text of this telegram is given in the Mahatma Letters, and detailed history This dispatch was set out in J. Barborka’s book “The Mahatmas and Their Teachings”: “...On October 24, Mr. Sinnett sent a letter from Simla to Amritsar to Madame Blavatsky. It took three days to reach her, arriving on the 27th at 2.00 in the afternoon. H.P.B. immediately “forwarded” the journalist’s message to the Mahatma, who received it 30 miles from Rawalpindi at 2.05 pm. Koot Hoomi sent a telegram to Mr. Sinnett at 4.00 pm from Jhelum. Regarding this, the Mahatma made the following comments: If it is H.E. B[lavatskaya] was “the author of my letters, if it was she who created my messages, then unless we admit that she is omnipresent or has the gift of flying from Amritsar to Jhelum - a distance of more than 200 miles - in two minutes, how could she write in me message in my own handwriting at Jhelum less than two hours after your letter was received by her at Amritsar?”
This should be proof enough for any of the slanderers! There was no way Madame Blavatsky could have written a telegraph message.”
Photo 1. Text of the telegram: 30 words written in Mahatma K.H.'s own handwriting. Above is the point and time of departure of the telegram - Jhelum, 16.25, and destination - Allahabad.
Interesting evidence of the reality of the Mahatmas are their letters. Among the letters sent by the Mahatmas to British Theosophists were not only written in the usual way, but also created by the so-called “precipitation” method, unknown in the West, based on paranormal activity materialization. This is how most of the Mahatma letters were created.
When analyzing a handwritten text obtained in this way, it becomes clear that it involves a technique or technique unknown to the science of that era. As an illustration, we present an enlarged fragment of the Mahatma’s letter, which clearly shows the unusual structure of handwritten text on paper, indicating that methods unknown to Western science were used to create this image.
Photo 2. Fragment of a letter from Mahatma K.H. August 1882
Society for Psychical Research, London
Enlarged image of part of the letter text (see photo above). The photograph clearly shows the characteristic details of the image obtained using the deposition method: the text is written as if from diagonal lines
Indirect evidence of the real existence of Mahatmas and their unusual knowledge and abilities are numerous demonstrations by H.P. Blavatsky of various phenomenal manifestations in the presence of a large number of witnesses, which obviously excluded the possibility of any deception. For the most part, these phenomena were based on the materialization of various objects - from jewelry(brooches and rings) to household items (cups and saucers). As E. Blavatsky emphasized, she acquired the ability to perform these paranormal manifestations under the direct guidance of the Mahatmas. The phenomenal manifestations (in particular, the phenomenon of materialization) demonstrated by E. Blavatsky are described in detail in the books of A.P. Sinnett, G. Olcott, J. Barborki, K. Wachtmeister; It also contains the names and surnames of witnesses to these phenomena, who sometimes confirmed in writing the reality of these phenomena. During the first decades of the history of the theosophical movement, many such artifacts accumulated.
Scientific ideas ahead of the times
And yet, in our opinion, the most important evidence of the real existence of a community of spiritual Teachers of the East is not even the testimonies of people who saw them and not the presence of a number of convincing artifacts, but the third argument - scientific truths and predictions, set forth in books transmitted by the Masters through their collaborators to Western society. The scientific discoveries predicted by the spiritual Teachers of the East were actually made decades after they were mentioned in the works of E. Blavatsky.
X-rays, radiant matter by William Crookes, the discovery of the electron by Thomson, the theory that matter (substance) is equivalent to energy (Einstein’s formula E = mc2), and space and time are interdependent on each other and much, much more - all this was set out in philosophical works of E.P. Blavatsky before representatives of official science announced this.
In Blavatsky's time it was believed that the atom was indivisible. And in the letters of the Teachers of Shambhala addressed to member of the British Theosophical Society A.P. Sinnett, it was said that science would soon discover the divisibility of the atom. The same idea was expressed in Blavatsky's seminal work, The Secret Doctrine. This work clearly stated that the atom is divisible and must consist of particles, or subatoms. The Mahatma Letters were received by A. Sinnett in 1881-1884, The Secret Doctrine was published in 1888. And only in 1897 J. Thomson announced the discovery of the electron. We emphasize that the idea of the infinite divisibility of matter, available in scientific ideas Mahatmas, were not a hypothesis of a narrow, private nature; such a concept had enormous ideological significance for the future of all science.
In the same work, Blavatsky wrote that matter is characterized by continuous vibrations. During Blavatsky’s time, many scientists considered atoms not only indivisible, but also immobile in all states of matter except gas (although M. Lomonosov and other representatives of his era already held a different, correct point of view). The Secret Doctrine stated that although matter appears inert, it is highest degree is active, its particles vibrate, but so quickly that this movement is imperceptible to the physical eye.
The materials received from the Teachers of Shambhala by A. Sinnett (later they were published under the title “Letters of the Mahatmas”) also stated that there are invisible planets in the Solar System, undiscovered by science. Here is a quote from this source: “Neither the intra-Mercurial planets nor those in the orbit of Neptune have yet been discovered, although this is strongly suspected. We know that such exist and where they are; and that there are countless planets “burnt out,” say scientists; in obscuration - we say; planets in the process of formation and not yet luminous, etc. (...) Edison's tasimeter, which has the greatest degree of sensitivity and is attached to large telescope, can be very useful in its improved form. A tasimeter adapted in this way will make it possible not only to measure the heat of the most distant of stars, but will also detect radiations that are invisible and otherwise undetectable, and therefore the planets as well. (...) Science will hear sounds from some planets before it sees these planets. This is a prophecy."
As followers of Theosophy later noted, this prophecy was fulfilled with the discovery of quasars.
Let us add that in 1982 NASA officially recognized the possibility of the existence of an unknown planet, stating that far beyond outer planets There really is some kind of celestial body in the solar system. Currently, scientists are unsure about how many undiscovered celestial bodies may be in our Solar System - one or more.
Another interesting and ideologically very important idea Theosophy and Agni Yoga - the idea of the existence of non-physical types, or states, of matter - the so-called subtle matter - and the presence in space of subtle worlds, or planes of existence, formed by this matter. The Shambhala teachings speak of subtle matter, and modern physics There is a concept of dark matter. According to the latest data from astrophysics, 95% of our Universe consists of types of matter unknown to modern science, inaccessible to laboratory research due to its invisibility. This matter, called “dark” matter, is not visible to light of any wavelength. As astrophysicists note, light passes through this matter without practically interacting with it, so with the same success “dark” matter could be called transparent or invisible. (Subtle matter has a similar nature, according to Theosophy and Agni Yoga. This matter is described in these teachings as transparent, invisible to ordinary vision due to the rarefied nature of its structure.) Of course, the question is whether the dark and subtle types of matter are related to each other, whether there is they are one and the same or not, the science of the future will decide. But one thing is clear: there are certain parallels between the ontological and cosmogonic views of the Mahatmas and the latest hypotheses (and even discoveries!) of modern scientists.
Without a doubt, many scientific ideas- about subtle matter, about the divisibility of the atom, etc. - were expressed in ancient Indian classical philosophy, centuries and millennia ago. But in the teachings of Theosophy and Agni Yoga, this knowledge was concretized and presented in a completely rational language close to science.
There is only one conclusion that can be drawn from all these facts: give such accurate forecasts of future scientific discoveries and at the same time reveal such deep knowledge of man, the Earth and the Cosmos - knowledge exceeding scientific achievements modern civilization - could only be a very powerful organization, and quite real, not mythical. It is quite obvious that this organization must have possessed colossal, complex knowledge environment, which only a few geniuses - Blavatsky and the Roerich family - could never have realized, despite their creative potential and truly great knowledge.
There is another, more prosaic consideration. If we assume that Blavatsky and the Roerichs were such outstanding philosophers that they were able to develop their own philosophical teachings, significantly different from the classical tradition - for what purpose did they claim that these teachings, which are of obvious value to society, were transmitted to them by the Mahatmas? It is difficult to understand why a person who has created something outstanding could attribute the authorship of his creation to someone else, but not to himself.
Finally, an elementary comparison of the literary styles of the main part of the texts of Agni Yoga and the works of E.I. Roerich and N.K. Roerich shows that the books of Agni Yoga (with the exception of the first book, “Leaves of the Garden of Moria”, in two parts) and the Roerichs’ works on literary style are clearly different from each other. Consequently, the teaching of Agni Yoga was not created by the Roerichs themselves, but was transmitted to them by someone else who had a very characteristic literary style.
Of course, the creative contribution of the Roerich family (mainly E.I. Roerich) to the creation of this teaching is enormous, thanks to which Mahatma M., who passed it on to the Roerichs, considered Elena Ivanovna a co-author of this teaching. But something else is obvious - the main author of the teachings of Agni Yoga was not an invention of either Blavatsky or the Roerichs, he really existed as a historical figure.
Who created the teachings of the Mahatmas?
There is another argument in favor of the fact that the teachings of the Mahatmas were created precisely by an entire organization of highly spiritually and intellectually developed individuals, and not just E.P. Blavatsky and the Roerichs, as their opponents claim. If we assume that the teachings of Theosophy and Agni Yoga were really created by Blavatsky and the Roerichs on the basis of already existing Eastern teachings, and were not received from the Himalayan community of philosophers and spiritual ascetics, then a reasonable question will arise - what teachings were used as their basis?
There is no clear answer to this question yet. In Agni Yoga one can see similarities with various systems of yoga, and with Buddhism, and with Vedanta, and with Kashmir Shaivism, and with neo-Vedantism; a number of ideas of theosophy and Agni Yoga are close to Western schools of philosophy - Hermeticism, Pythagoreanism, Platonism and Neoplatonism, the teachings of Leibniz, Holbach (oddly enough!), Bergson, Russian cosmism, etc. But besides all this, Living Ethics contains much that is new, original, and not associated with any other existing teachings.
Amateurs in matters of philosophical sciences may underestimate the importance of the problem of the philosophical genesis (origin) of the teachings of the Mahatmas. Meanwhile, the question of the primary sources of the teachings of Theosophy and Agni Yoga is very important. If professional historians of philosophy and orientalists managed to prove that Theosophy and Agni Yoga are just the result of processing of previous, already known, philosophical sources, and there is nothing new in them, this could be an argument in favor of the fact that Theosophy and Agni Yoga in fact, it was created only by Blavatsky and the Roerichs, and not by generations of unknown guardians of the esoteric heritage of the East, whose heirs were the Mahatmas. But the fact of the matter is that there is no such evidence to this day.
Claiming that Theosophy and Agni Yoga are a reworking of already known philosophical teachings of India, critics of Blavatsky and the Roerichs did not bother to provide substantiated evidence for their opinion.
A typical story happened on this basis with the famous Orientalist, Professor Max Müller, author of many books and textbooks.
Like other conservative scientists, M. Muller considered the works of E.P. Blavatsky's compilations of famous sources on Indian philosophy, and herself as a charlatan.
Professor Müller's unflattering opinion of Blavatsky and her works was, of course, not due to the fact that he had become acquainted with her works. On the one hand, Müller’s opinion was influenced by the image that Blavatsky created through the long-term slanderous campaign launched against her in the press by opponents of Theosophy.
On the other hand, M. Muller's judgment was clearly not free from a certain amount of conservatism inherent in most representatives of academic science. Many experts in classical Indian philosophy, even in the era of Blavatsky, were hostile to the assertion that, in addition to the philosophical systems known to science, in India and Tibet there could have been some teachings unknown to the West, on the basis of which theosophy was created.
However, adherence to popular opinions and disdain for the philosophical teaching unknown to M. Müller played a bad joke on him.
Professor Müller's silence
In March 1904, scientific secretary E.P. Blavatsky, George R. Mead, published in the Theosophical Review a message about his correspondence with M. Muller. Mead was a bachelor and master humanities. He received an honors degree from Cambridge, where he specialized in classical philology (Greek and Latin), and also studied philosophy at Oxford and wrote several scholarly works on Gnosticism, Hermeticism and the origins of Christianity.
The correspondence between the two scientists began after M. Muller published several of his lectures, in which he gave a critical assessment of the teachings of Theosophy. J. Mead wrote reviews of these lectures in the form of three articles.
Muller sent Meade his comments, correcting him on one or two points, and a correspondence began between them. The professor expressed bewilderment that Mead, despite all his education, wasted his energy and time on theosophy instead of studying academic oriental studies, in which all areas could be open to him. Müller also wrote that he could not understand why such an educated person as Mead took Blavatsky so seriously, who, in the professor’s opinion, harmed the cause of genuine Oriental studies with her parodies of Buddhism and Vedanta, mixed in her works with Western ideas. To this Mead replied that he served the truth, and if Muller could convince him that the theosophy of H.P. Blavatsky is just a compilation of already known sources, moreover distorted by Blavatsky, then he - that is, Mead - will spare no effort to bring these facts to the attention of all Theosophists.
Following this, J. Mead asked Professor Muller to indicate to him what, in his opinion, the original texts in Sanskrit, Pali or any other language served as the basis for the Dzyan stanzas and commentaries on them in the Secret Doctrine or in the Voice of the Silence. As Mead wrote, “I myself have searched in vain for many years for any trace of the originals or fragments that would resemble them. If we could get hold of the primary sources, we couldn’t wish for anything better; This is exactly the material we need.”
In response to the scientist’s request, Professor Müller sent him a short note pointing to two verses from “The Voice of the Silence”, which, according to him, are clearly Western in their way of thinking - which is what they pretend to be. Mead replied to the professor that he was very upset that M. Muller did not indicate the texts that served as the source of any statement from the Book of the Golden Rules or any stanza from the Book of Dzyan; however, as reported by Mead, he would like to publish criticisms M. Muller, reserving the right to comment on them. To this Professor Max Müller hastened to reply, asking Mead not to do this and to immediately return his letter to him, since he intended to write something more worthwhile for the Theosophical Review. As Mead wrote, “Of course, I returned the letter to him, but I never received the promised evidence that these amazing literary creations exposed H.P. Blavatsky, a wretched literary charwoman who concocted a motley clownish outfit for fools from scraps of misunderstood translations. I would like to add that this proposal remains valid for each and every one of the Orientalists who want to support the last Nestor of Orientalism in this, in my opinion, ridiculous statement.”
For those who do not fully understand the essence of the situation, let us explain: it is one thing to indiscriminately repeat slanderous accusations against Blavatsky that were circulated in the press, but it is quite another thing to present scientific evidence that the texts that formed the basis of Theosophy were composed by Blavatsky herself and were a compilation from sources already known to science, which were also distorted, as its opponents claimed. In the person of Mead, Max Muller met a serious opponent, conducting a scientific discussion with whom required the professor not to repeat idle fiction about Blavatsky, but specific facts and evidence that could only be obtained by reading her works.
Having read Blavatsky’s works, M. Müller, presumably, regretted that he had so uncritically believed the reviews of her works coming from the ignorant. In any case, the professor never provided Mead with scientific evidence that the ideas of the Secret Doctrine were borrowed by Blavatsky from already known sources on Indian philosophy. Nevertheless, the professor did not want to directly admit his mistake and report that Blavatsky’s works are based not on “distorted translations” of already known texts, but on completely new philosophical sources, hitherto unknown to Western science. Instead, M. Muller sent a letter to Mead that was ridiculous in its content. And in response to the statement of Blavatsky’s scientific secretary that he would publish his opinion in the journal, the professor, of course, hastened to ask him not to do this - after all, then it would have become clear to everyone that Muller’s critical reviews of theosophy were unfounded in any way, and his judgments famous Orientalist about this teaching and about Blavatsky turned out to be, to put it mildly, inadequate. If made public, this fact would deal a significant blow to the reputation of the respected professor.
Thus ended this brief discussion in the correspondence of two authoritative specialists.
Particular attention should be paid to what J. Mead, an educated and critically thinking scientist, further writes in his article about the sources underlying Blavatsky’s works. “It’s not for nothing that I called these fragments (...) amazing literary creations,” Mead noted. - This is not the opinion of an enthusiast unfamiliar with Eastern literature, or with the great cosmogonic systems of the past, or with the theosophy of world religions, but the mature judgment of a person who has devoted about 20 years to the study of these very issues...
The stanzas reveal to us a system of cosmogenesis and anthropogenesis, which in its scope and circumstances far exceeds any explanation of similar subjects known to us from the past; they cannot be called a skillful mosaic, composed of scattered archaic fragments preserved in sacred books and classical authors; they are original and at the same time bear the stamp of antiquity and that brevity that the Western world considers long lost. Moreover, they are accompanied by commentary (...), creating an overall impression of authenticity, convincing to any scientist who has overcome the initial prejudice against their study."
This is the opinion about the sources of Theosophy, expressed by an erudite and critically thinking scientist! And what are the opinions of the ignorant, picked up by tabloid scribblers, about the “charlatan Blavatsky”, who created the teaching of Theosophy on the basis of allegedly incorrectly interpreted translations of sources already known to science, worth in comparison?
As noted by S. Cranston, a researcher of Blavatsky's life and work, Tibetologist David Reigle established in 1983 that the Book of Q-te, which Blavatsky referred to in The Secret Doctrine as the source of Stantz Dzyan, turned out to be Ganjur, "Translation of the Word (Buddha)" - 108-volume collection of Buddhist works. Whether this is true or not remains to be seen. It should be noted that in addition to Ganjur, which is a translation of Sanskrit texts into Tibetan, the Tibetan Tripitaka (Buddhist canon) also included Danjur (Tengyur), or “Deuteronomy”, consisting of 224-225 volumes. The contents of Danjur are translated Indian shastras, religious and philosophical works of Tibetan authors, Indian treatises on grammar, astronomy, astrology, mathematics, medicine, etc. As the famous orientalist E. Torchinov emphasized in his course of lectures “Introduction to Buddhology,” “ Danjur is a completely original and therefore even more valuable body of texts.”
However, today this philosophical source remains almost as little known to Western science as it was in Blavatsky’s time.
These are the main arguments in favor of the real existence in India and Tibet of an organization of spiritual Teachers of the East closed to the uninitiated. And these arguments cannot be refuted or deprived of their inherent weight, no matter how much the opponents of this idea would like it.
Shambhala as a myth
Let us now try to consider the idea of Shambhala in another aspect, in the aspect of myth as a philosophical concept.
As already mentioned, almost all the outstanding philosophers of the world have been involved in the analysis of myth and mythology to one degree or another. However, none of them considered myths to be deliberate deceptions or ignorant ideas about anything. Some philosophers emphasized the ethical role of myth, others highlighted its symbolic side, others considered the relationship between mythology and religion, others analyzed the dialectics of myth, etc. At the same time, all famous philosophers recognized huge role mythology in world culture. Of course, there was also criticism of myth, and already since ancient times, but such criticism had nothing in common with Mr. Andreev’s “philosophy of myth.”
A. Andreev’s confused and contradictory arguments about myths are generally difficult to understand. On the one hand, his myths are the “engines of human history,” and on the other hand, these engines turn out to be nothing more than “collective illusions” and “dreams,” which, moreover, “can influence the masses, instill in them certain ideas, which means managing people.” It seems that A. Andreev deliberately confuses different meanings of the concept “myth” - the philosophical meaning of myth as a cultural phenomenon and the everyday meaning of this word, and even in a negative context, implying ignorant inventions or lies.
We fully agree with the statement that myths are the engines of human history. But everyone knows that history can be “advanced” (if we are talking about progress) only by positive, evolutionary means, the main one of which is culture, in which mythology really plays a big role.
If we are talking about, as A. Andreev writes, creating “collective illusions, dreams” in order to use them to “influence the masses, instill in them certain ideas, and therefore control people” - then what does it have to do with is there culture, philosophical ideas and historical progress? In this case, we are not talking about mythology at all (in the classical, philosophical meaning of this concept), but rather about ideological and political propaganda of a negative kind (or “brainwashing”), most clearly realized in the delusional ideology of the Third Reich.
But everyone understands that neither “collective illusions” nor attempts to “control people” have anything to do with genuine myths and legends that form part of world culture and actually “move history,” as A. Andreev writes.
Of course, A. Andreev’s confused arguments about the role of mythology in historical progress are not accidental and have a very specific goal - to instill in the reader the idea that the Roerichs, they say, composed bad myths with the help of which they tried to influence people’s consciousness. Here is a brilliant example of how, with the help of deliberate lies (which have nothing to do with scientific research), real “collective illusions” are created, and they are not created by the Roerichs, but by their modern opponents!
However, what one doctor of historical sciences was pretty clever about, trying to cast a “shadow on the fence,” folk wisdom expressed very simply. “A fairy tale is a lie, but there is a hint in it, a lesson for good fellows” - this old Russian proverb speaks better than any pseudo-scientist fog about what the true meaning of folklore and mythology actually is. Fairy tales, legends and myths were created by the peoples of the world not in order to use them to “control people” by imposing something on them, but in order to imprint in the minds of descendants genuine ethical values and significant historical events, perpetuating them in certain images and stories.
This role of myths and legends was emphasized in the teachings of Agni Yoga: “Of all creative energies, thought remains the highest. What will be the crystal of this energy? Someone thinks that exact knowledge will be the crown of thought, but it is more accurate to say that a legend will crown thought. The legend will form the meaning of creative energy, and aspirations and achievements will be expressed in a concise formula. It is not true to think that the legend belongs to ghostly antiquity. An unprejudiced mind will distinguish the legend created in all the days of the Universe. Every national achievement, every leader, every discovery, every disaster, every feat is clothed in a winged legend. Therefore, let us not despise the legends of truth, but let us look vigilantly and take care of the words of reality. A legend expresses the will of the people, and we cannot name a single false legend.
The spiritual aspiration of a powerful collective captures the image of true meaning, and the shell of the symbol means a world sign, like a world language, which is inevitable in evolution. (...)".
Found in the mythology of many peoples of the world, the image of Shambhala as a collective of selfless spiritual ascetics is that symbol, that “sign of the world language” that really helps the evolution of all humanity, saturating the consciousness of entire generations of people with the great idea of a wonderful and perfect future, sooner or later destined for all humanity . In other words, Shambhala (as well as the island of Utopia and the city of the Sun) is a prototype of the human community in the distant future, when, in the language of the Gospel, there will be one flock and one shepherd. In Agni Yoga there is the concept of the New (sixth) race as more perfect than modern humanity, evolutionary type of people. Accordingly, the authors of Agni Yoga saw the life of the future society as perfect and harmonious, free from the vices and flaws inherent in modern civilization.
And again we ask: what could be bad in a myth that embodies the idea of the existence of a free, fair, morally elevated group of workers?
Not “to manage people,” as A. Andreev writes, but to inspire them - this is the evolutionary role and philosophical and ethical significance of these myths. And one can accuse the “theosophical myth” of having a bad influence on mass consciousness with the same justification as all folklore as a whole.
And not only folklore, by the way...
Literary myths and propaganda myths
It is interesting to note that the idea of the existence on the planet of a special collective of individuals, exceeding the level of development of the rest of humanity and seeing the purpose of their life in selfless help to the world, is expressed not only in folklore and, in particular, in the myths about Shambhala. This idea has been reflected in many of the best works fiction, including modern ones. You can speculate as much as you like on the topic where many writers got this idea from - this question is interesting in itself. But besides this, the fact remains: the image of a small society of altruistic passionaries, who set the goal of their life not to earthly goods, but to spiritual ideals and helping people around them, is reflected in many literary works.
In the novel by science fiction writer Jules Verne, the Indian prince Dakkar - a brilliant scientist and fighter for the rights of oppressed peoples - becomes Captain Nemo, creates a team of associates from people from different countries, fences himself off from the world with a secret refuge in the form of the Nautilus, which was ahead of the science of its era, and secretly helps people all over the world . The same idea of the existence of a small community of people who were ahead of most of their contemporaries intellectually and morally and who use their superior knowledge to help others.
The image of Castalia created in the immortal novel by G. Hesse “The Glass Bead Game” also echoes the idea of the Himalayan Brotherhood of Adepts of Higher Knowledge; Master of the Game Joseph Knecht is associated with the spiritual leader of the Himalayan Brotherhood of Adepts, and the bead game itself, born of Hesse’s imagination, resembles creative activity Teachers, called in Agni Yoga thought-creativity.
Very close to the idea of Shambhala as the evolutionary center of the entire planet and the plot famous novel Strugatsky “It’s Hard to Be a God”; Echoes of this idea can be seen in their other novel, “Ugly Swans.” Even S. Marshak’s wonderful children’s fairy tale “Twelve Months” reminds of the same idea!
Is it possible to assume that the purpose of creating these and many other literary works (which are the same myth, fiction!) was to “control people”? I’m afraid that only one “science fiction writer” could dream of this - A. Andreev.
The same idea-myth can be seen not only in fiction, but also in music - from the heroes of Wagner’s operas to the song of the bard A. Gorodnitsky about the Atlanteans who “hold the sky in stone hands”... Both painting and sculpture are full of expressions of the same mythological image!
If we are guided by the point of view of A. Andreev, then we have to admit that the entire culture is permeated with similar ideas and myths, which to one degree or another influence the consciousness of people. So why shouldn’t A. Andreev declare the entire culture as a whole dangerous, and not just individual myths as part of it?
Then the process of educating the younger generation through the means of culture - in particular, fiction - can be looked at differently. What if the process of education is dangerous and capable of influencing people’s consciousness? And why do our youth even need myths about passionary heroes and spiritual Teachers? Let her highest ideals be, as the hero of one comedy film put it, “jazz, box and sex” - and that will be enough for her to be happy! In fact... It will be very easy for some people to manage a society with such “high” needs in the right way.
Strange as it may seem, one gets the feeling that certain forces in our country are really afraid of the influence of high philosophical ideas on people’s consciousness. And they are afraid so much that, in defiance of them, they are engaged in propaganda myth-making, directed, among other things, against the spiritual and philosophical heritage of Blavatsky and the Roerichs.
It is impossible not to notice that A. Andreev and other opponents of Blavatsky and the Roerichs created a whole chain of false statements, the purpose of which is to form in the public consciousness a distorted idea of the philosophical heritage of our outstanding compatriots.
The first link in this chain of fables is the assertion that Mahatmas do not exist. The second link lies in the desire to present the spiritual communication of the Roerichs with the Teachers exclusively in the form of spiritualistic seances. The third link is the attribution of Theosophy and Agni Yoga to some marginal forms of religions: if the teaching of Living Ethics was received from otherworldly forces and, moreover, in the course of spiritualistic experiments, can this teaching be considered philosophical? Well, of course it's religion!! - This is what the “logic” of the reasoning of such “researchers” invariably leads to.
In the work of Protodeacon A. Kuraev, “Lessons of Sect Studies,” which is essentially a “remake” of his “Satanism for the Intelligentsia,” there is a chapter with a characteristic title: “Spiritual Origins of Agni Yoga.” At the same time, neither A. Kuraev nor A. Andreev is embarrassed by the fact that E.I. Roerich repeatedly warned followers of the Living Ethics about the harm and danger of spiritualism, calling it spiritual depravity.
However, both Protodeacon A. Kuraev and historian A. Andreev have long become famous for the characteristic techniques of their “documentary investigations,” and few readers interested in the philosophical heritage of the Roerichs consider their arguments seriously.
Notes:
1. This is what Blavatsky’s demonstrations of paranormal abilities were called by her contemporaries. - Approx. auto
2. Andreev A.I. Himalayan Brotherhood: Theosophical myth and its creators. St. Petersburg, 2008.
3. “The Roerichs: Myths and Facts.” St. Petersburg, 2011
4. Andreev A.I. Himalayan Brotherhood: Theosophical myth and its creators. P. 392.
5. Roerich E.I. From a letter dated 09.09.37.
6. “Leaves of the Garden of Moria.” Book 2, "Illumination", 18.
7. In particular, the outstanding neurophysiologist N.P. was involved in research in this area. Bekhterev, concluding about the real existence of paranormal abilities of the human psyche. See Bekhtereva N.P. The magic of the brain and the labyrinths of life. M., 2010.
8. Vernadsky V.I. Noosphere // Vernadsky V.I. Biosphere and noosphere. M., 2004, p. 264.
9. Andreev A.I. Himalayan Brotherhood: Theosophical myth and its creators. St. Petersburg, 2008. P. 7.
10. “Letters of Mahatmas”, M., 2010.
11. Barborka J. Mahatmas and their teachings. M., 2005. In the original: “Mahatmas and Their Letters”.
12. Hanson V. Mahatmas and humanity. Magnitogorsk, 1995.
13. Sinnett A.P. The Occult World. L.: TPH, 1969.
14. This is what British followers of Blavatsky called Mahatmas. - Approx. auto
15. Barborka J. Mahatmas and their teachings.
16. Boston Courier, July 18, 1886.
17. Barborka J. Mahatmas and their teachings. P. 325.
18. Letters of the Mahatmas. M., 2011.
19. Quotes are used here due to the fact that Blavatsky sent the letter not in an ordinary way, but in a paranormal way, which allowed Adepts to instantly exchange messages over long distances. This method was based on their ability to dematerialize and materialize objects, including letters. - Approx. auto
20. Blavatsky's opponents argued that the Mahatmas were her own invention, they did not actually exist, and all the letters of the Mahatmas received by British followers of Theosophy were also written by Blavatsky herself. - Approx. auto
21. Barborka J. Mahatmas and their teachings. P. 225.
22. For example, Barborka J., Mahatmas and their teachings. pp. 54-55, etc.
23. Letters of the Mahatmas, October 1882.
24. They are represented mainly by her epistolary heritage. - Approx. auto
25. “The Voice of Silence” is one of the small in volume but deep in content works published by E.P. Blavatsky. See Blavatsky E.P. "Voice of Silence. Seven Gates, two paths." M., 2011.
26. Quoted from: Cranston S. “E.P. Blavatsky. The life and work of the founder of the Theosophical movement. Moscow - Riga, 1996. pp. 462-464.
27. The name of one of the treatises included in the “Voice of Silence”. - Approx. auto
28. The Book of Dzyan is a philosophical source, comments on which were used by Blavatsky as the basis for The Secret Doctrine. - Approx. auto
29. This refers to M. Muller. - Approx. auto
30. Quoted from: Cranston S. “E.P. Blavatsky. The life and work of the founder of the Theosophical movement. Moscow - Riga, 1996. pp. 462-464.
31. This refers to the Dzyan stanzas, comments on which formed the basis of the Secret Doctrine. - Approx. auto
32. Quoted from: Cranston S. “E.P. Blavatsky. Life and work of the founder of the Theosophical movement." Moscow - Riga, 1996. pp. 462-464.
33. In another transcription - Gyu-de. - Approx. auto
34. In the old transcription - Kanjur or Kangyur; the modern, correct rendering of the name of this source is Ganjur. - Approx. auto
35. Andreev. Himalayan Brotherhood: Theosophical myth and its creators. S. 5.
36. “Signs of Agni Yoga”, 19.
37. The follower of the Roerichs, R. Rudzitis, in his work “The Brotherhood of the Grail” convincingly showed that the image of Shambhala was reflected in the mythology and folklore of almost all peoples of the world. See Rudzitis R. The Brotherhood of the Grail. Riga, 1994. - Approx. auto
38. Lessons in sect studies. How to recognize a sect. Using the example of the Roerich movement." St. Petersburg, 2002.
Teachings of the Great Mahatmas
PREFACE
One of the pillars of the teaching of the New Age is the Teaching of the Great Mahatmas, the essence of which is visible from the cited letters of the Mahatmas (1880-1884).
There is a single chain of the Hierarchy of Light, continuing into Infinity, and all the true Bearers of Light, appearing and staying even now on our Earth, are Its Links. Of course, the Sons of Light, who came with higher worlds(Venus, Jupiter) to our planet at the end of the third race of our circle to accelerate the evolution of its humanity, and there are the greatest Spirits standing at the head of the Hierarchy of Light accessible and closest to us in karma. They are the Progenitors of our consciousness. We owe our mental development to them. And of course. They belong to the chain of Builders of the Cosmos. Each such Builder must go through human evolution in order to then stand at the head of one or another planet. But since evolution is limitless, then all these Builders, completing one cycle of evolution, begin another, and are born again, but in the Higher Worlds
Let us not forget that the life of all kingdoms was transferred to our planet from the Moon, which is why the “Secret Doctrine” indicates the double ancestors of humanity - Lunar and Solar. The Lunar ancestors, in fact, are now humanity, or rather, the majority of it, but the Solar ancestors are those Sons of Light who took upon themselves selfless creativity for the benefit of the entire Cosmos and came to our planet from the higher worlds, as already said, at the end of our Third Race Circle. From that time on, They tirelessly incarnated on the threshold of all races, all great events, in order to each time give a new shift in the consciousness of humanity. Verily, they have drunk many cups of poison. So, they are the Founders of the Great Brotherhood on the Sacred Island during the time of Atlantis. They are also the Guardians of the Trans-Himalayan Stronghold in our Race.
The Stronghold of Great Knowledge (Shambhala) has existed since time immemorial and stands on constant watch over the evolution of humanity, observing and directing the course of world events into a salutary channel. All Great Teachers are connected with this Abode. All of them are its Members. The activities of this Stronghold of Knowledge and Light are diverse. The history of all times, of all peoples, contains evidence of this assistance, hidden from publicity and usually coming at turning points in the history of countries. Acceptance or evasion of it was certainly accompanied by the prosperity or fall of the country, respectively.
This help in the form of warnings or advice and entire Teachings manifested itself in the most unexpected and varied aspects. These warnings run through history as a red thread. With few exceptions, all such warnings were ignored. Thus, one can recall how the Swedish king Charles XII received a strong warning not to launch a fatal campaign against Russia, which put an end to the development of his state. Since the publication of the diary of Countess d'Adhemar, a lady of the court who was under the ill-fated Marie Antoinette, the fact that the queen warned the queen through letters and a personal meeting, through the medium of the same countess, about the impending danger to the country, to everything, has become widely known. royal house and to many of their friends. And, invariably, all these warnings came from one source, from the Count of Saint-Germain, a member of the Himalayan community. But all his life-saving warnings and advice were taken as insult and deception. He was persecuted and threatened with the Bastille more than once. The tragic consequences of these denials are well known to everyone.
One can also recall Napoleon, who in the first years of his glory so loved to talk about his leading Star, but who, nevertheless, clouded by success and overwhelmed with pride, did not accept the entire Council and went against the main condition - he should not have attacked Russia - the defeat of his armies and his sad end are also known.
We also know that under President Washington there was a mysterious professor whose advice he used, hence his success. At the announcement of the freedom of America, at the separation of her from England, it is recorded that during this Historical Assembly, in a moment of hesitation and indecision, a tall Stranger appeared among those present, who made a stirring speech, ending with the exclamation: “America, let her be free!” The enthusiasm of the meeting was raised, and American freedom was signed. When those present wanted to greet the one who had helped them make a great decision, the Stranger could not be found, he disappeared. Thus, throughout history one can see how diversely the help of the Great Community of Light has been and is being manifested. Thus, the Western Church in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries knew about the existence of a mysterious Spiritual refuge in the Heart of Asia, which was then headed by Prester John, as this great Spirit called himself. This presbyter John, from time to time, sent his accusatory letters to the Popes and other heads of the church. From history we know how one of the Popes equipped an embassy in Central Asia to Prester John. One can imagine the purpose for which such an embassy was sent, and, of course, after many ordeals and vicissitudes, this embassy returned home without finding the Spiritual Citadel.
Yes, history knows many outstanding individuals who were destined to play a role in the promotion human evolution and before that visited this Stronghold of Great Knowledge. Thus, at one time, Paracelsus spent some time in one of the Ashrams of the Trans-Himalayan Stronghold, learning great knowledge, which he outlined in many volumes, often in obscure formulas, for the persecution of these lights of knowledge was great. The crimes of ignorance against knowledge are terrible. Gloomy are the pages of true history! Let us not forget Cagliostro, who escaped execution thanks to the intervention of a mysterious stranger who appeared before the Pope, after which the execution was canceled, and then Cagliostro himself disappeared from prison. Let us also remember our much-maligned El. P. Blavatsky, who brought the bright news about the Mahatmas. If it were not for the anger and envy that surrounded her, she would have written two more volumes of the secret teaching, which would have included pages from the life of the Great Teachers. But people chose to kill her, and the work remained unfinished. This is how history repeats itself, this is how the karma of humanity is formed.
It should be understood that all Great Teachers, Mahatmas or Bel. The brothers were Bodhisattvas throughout their lives. Maha-Kogan or Great Lord is the title of the Lord of Shambhala. Responsibilities associated with this appointment are assumed on a rotating basis by Bel. Brothers, according to their individual assignments. The Seven Kogans answer to the Seven Kumaras of the “Secret Doctrine,” and esoterically there are eight of them. All these Seven were the Lords of the Flame, who endowed humanity with reason.
You know that Mahatma in the East means the Great Soul, the Soul that has completed its earthly path and is working for the benefit of the World.
At the head of the Sons of Light is the Archangel Michael, and His opponent in the camp of Darkness was Satan (also called Lucifer, although he has long lost the right to this name), who was once among the great Kumaras who bestowed the light of reason on the pitiful earthlings still deprived of it. The Master of the Earth is now fighting for its very existence. The great foretold Armageddon of our race is in full swing. And again Archangel Michael with the Light Army fights against Lucifer. Of course, victory is always with the Light Forces, but terrible cataclysms are inevitable. That is why strongholds of Light are so important, so that in the coming threatening moments it would be possible to gather the workers of Light into safe places. Of course, although the decisive moment is behind us, many children will still have time to grow old. So, the fate of the world is in the hands of humanity. If the resurrection of the spirit occurs, if consciousness frees itself from the ghosts of the past and strives to build a New World, based on a new understanding of cooperation and knowledge, then the planet can survive.
The Brotherhood works in groups, and increasing tasks harmoniously unite the Council for new combinations. The work is divided into three tasks. The first is the search for a better earthly plane. The second is communicating these results to people. The third is finding ways to communicate with distant worlds. The first requires hard work and patience, the third requires resourcefulness and fearlessness, the second requires such dedication that the most difficult flight is a rest.
But now is the time of the terrible Armageddon, and therefore all research, all scientific work has been temporarily stopped, and all Light Forces are aimed at repelling the incessant attacks and terrible
(1836 - 1886), the great Indian sage, and the clear mind of his student and immediate successor Swami Vivekananda (1863 - 1902), the Indian philosopher and scientist, sounded a powerful call for spiritual synthesis in the last century.
Having walked the paths of the world's most important religions - Hinduism, Christianity and Islam - Ramakrishna brought the message of the unity of all religions. He found that the basis of all religions is one Truth.
Vivekananda met Ramakrishna in 1882 and since then has spent his entire life developing his ideas. He sees the spiritual poverty of the West, which has drowned out the call of the Spirit in its soul with rough materiality. He is affirmed in the idea that Vedanta, carried out from India into the world, can make the path of liberation easier for people.
An idea begins to take shape in Vivekananda’s mind - to build a bridge connecting East and West, to fertilize the young body of the West with the ancient universal Spirit of the East. Vivekananda emerges as the ambassador of India to the world, proclaiming: “The world needs India, India with its knowledge of God, with its method of liberation, with its accumulated spiritual heritage.”
In 1893, Vivekananda went to the United States of America for the Congress of Religions. He greets the youngest country on behalf of the monastic order of the oldest country. Proclaims the Truth perceived at the feet of his Teacher Ramakrishna, who empirically realized that all religions lead to one Ocean of Mercy, that all forms and shades are different aspects of the One Great Truth. Introduces the Western world to the ancient teachings of Vedanta. Travels almost all over America.
Soon Vivekananda notices the selfish, cruel features of American life and subjects them to scathing criticism. He strongly protests against the false Christianity and hypocrisy of many Christian leaders. With this criticism, Vivekananda angered the Christian leaders, who unleashed a whole stream of dirty slander on him. Thus, America was unable to fulfill Vivekananda’s dream of uniting West and East. All the motives of the Americans were aimed at satisfying material needs. In philosophy, positivism and pragmatism became dominant.
In 1895, Vivekananda wrote a course of lectures “Raja Yoga” - a book that so delighted Leo Tolstoy. In the same year, he accepted an invitation from London, there he wrote “Bhakti Yoga”, and upon returning to America - “Karma Yoga”. Then he creates a course on “Vedanta Philosophy”, as a result of which the Vedanta Society is organized in New York. Jnana Yoga appears in London. In 1897, Vivekananda returned to his homeland, having completed a huge mission: he laid the foundation for the real acquaintance and rapprochement of the West with the East. For the first time, the foundations of the majestic Eastern worldview were clearly and cordially presented to the West.
Returning to his homeland, Vivekananda creates the Ramakrishna Mission organization, whose task is to spread the ideas of Unity in the world. It became a center of religious activity not only in India, but had branches in a number of countries in Europe and America. Religion for Vivekananda did not consist of rituals and customs: he boldly cleansed living faith from prejudices, crushed the customs of early marriages, widow burning, etc. - religion was for him a living fire of self-sacrifice and love.
Ramakrishna and Vivekananda were the first to awaken Indian consciousness, they were the first Indian leaders in the full sense of the word. Ramakrishna was the spiritual force of India, Vivekananda was his voice. Their work was continued by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), Mahatma Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869 - 1948) and Aurobindo Ghose (1872 - 1950). In 1911 - 1916, books about the philosophy of Vedanta, about Ramakrishna and Vivekananda, as well as the works of Vivekananda, were published in Russia; Romain Rolland's books “The Life of Ramakrishna” and “The Life of Vivekananda” were published in Russian in 1936; Jawaharlal Nehru's book "Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda" English language published in Calcutta in 1960.
THE FEAT OF HELENA PETROVNA BLAVATSKY IN THE LAST CENTURY
The feat of the Russian monk Sergius, after eight and a half centuries, was repeated by another Russian person - Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831 - 1891). Already in childhood, the majestic image of the Mahatma appeared before her - a tall Indian in a white turban, always the same. In 1851, Blavatsky traveled to England, and there, in London, her first meeting took place with the Mahatma, who appeared to her in childhood.
Then, over the next seven years, she tries three times to enter Tibet, but to no avail: in those days, foreigners were prohibited from entering the country. And only in 1864 she managed to achieve her goal - she penetrated into the inaccessible depths of Central Asia. After a heroic search, she finally found the mysterious sages of the Mahatmas there and became Their spiritual disciple. She stayed there for three years in one of their abodes (ashrams) in Tibet. There she received intimate knowledge about the secrets of the universe.
Blavatsky was a messenger of the Mahatmas and carried out Their instructions. Under the pseudonym “Radda-bai,” she wrote interesting essays about her travels through India and Tibet and her conversations with the Mahatmas. These notes, entitled “From the Caves and Wilds of Hindustan” (the second series of essays - “ Mysterious tribes on the Blue Mountains"), published in periodicals in the early 80s of the 19th century in Russia. They were then published as a separate book. And until recently, her literary name in Russia was associated only with these essays. Everything else was written and published in English.
In view of the strong and persistently expressed desire of its members to found a society for acquainting advanced consciousnesses with the sacred teachings of all religions and philosophies, Mahatma K.H. agreed to lead such a society, founded in New York in 1875 by Blavatsky and the American Colonel Henry Olcott. The emergence of the Theosophical Society was intended to prepare the Western world for the advent of the New Age by disseminating higher knowledge about the secrets and tasks of the universe. The teaching brought by Blavatsky did its great work - it awakened numerous consciousnesses throughout the world.
Theosophy translated from Greek means Divine Wisdom. Theosophy is a scientific-religious philosophy, that is, a synthesis of science, philosophy and religion - their coordination. Studying all the religions of the world, Theosophy finds that the innermost part of religions has the same foundations. Thus, Theosophy contains the truths that lie at the basis of all religions. The motto of the Theosophical Society is: “There is no religion higher than Truth.” There is a large theosophical literature.
Blavatsky's works were published in her time in America and England. In addition to many books on the topics of Eastern philosophy and ancient wisdom, such as “Isis Unveiled”, “The Key to Theosophy”, “The Voice of Silence”, “Pearls of the East”, as well as a huge number of articles, she wrote a major work in three volumes “The Secret Doctrine” , that is, “Intimate Knowledge” (1888), is a body of centuries-old hidden wisdom, a synthesis of the achievements of the evolution of life of previous cultures, questions of the future development of life and humanity. Two volumes were translated by Helena Roerich and published in Riga in 1937. Blavatsky never took credit for her works, but considered them only an imperfect transmission of the revelation of the Mahatmas entrusted to her.
But the emergence of a new department of Shambhala - and this became the Theosophical Society - caused a war of dark forces against it, because they did not want the advent of a bright era that threatened to destroy their power and influence. The clergy of orthodox religions (especially the Jesuits), as well as English racists who did not like Blavatsky’s great influence on Indians, took up arms against the founder of the Society.
A campaign was organized against her - constant attacks, insinuations, slander. And so the messenger of Shambhala, carrying out the instructions of the Mahatmas, carrying the mission of the herald of the New Epoch, was brought to the grave by the attacks of the enemies of Light.
Unfortunately, Blavatsky was not understood, not recognized and slandered in her homeland. It all started with a hostile and deceitful pamphlet by Vs. Solovyov’s “Modern Priestess of Isis”, published in 1894 in Russia. The slander he unleashed at one time spread unhindered throughout all of Russia, and its consequences continue to this day. To this day, epithets such as “deceiver”, “charlatan”, “adventurer” are automatically repeated without any argumentation.
In America, in response to Blavatsky’s accusation of the “fictitiousness” of her communication with the “non-existent” Teachers of Eastern Wisdom - the Mahatmas - in the Boston Courier newspaper of July 18, 1885, a protest appeared, signed by 70 Indian scientists, in which they claim that “Mahatmas are not Blavatsky’s invention, but the Supreme Beings, the existence of which none of the enlightened Indians doubt, whom our grandfathers and great-grandfathers knew, with whom many Indians are still in constant communication.” This was the testimony of the pandits - the scientists of the East.
Elena Ivanovna Roerich once wrote about H.P. Blavatsky: “Our great compatriot almost immediately after her death was incarnated in male body in Hungary. In 1924, she arrived at the main Stronghold and now, under the name of Brother X., she is working to save the world. Mocked, slandered, disgraced and persecuted, she took her place among the Saviors of mankind. This is how Cosmic Justice works. In the future Russia, her name will be raised to the proper level of veneration. Helena Petrovna Blavatsky is truly our national pride.”
Yes, she was a great spirit who took upon herself the difficult task of giving a shift to the consciousness of humanity, entangled in the dead clutches of church dogma and rushing into the no less dead dead end of atheism. She brought great knowledge and bright news about the Mahatmas and Shambhala. For seekers, the books of H. P. Blavatsky and her successor Annie Besant were necessary - through them they touched the Ancient Wisdom. Some ancient texts were brought, such as the Stanzas of Dzyan, the Voice of the Silence, the Light on the Path, etc. Through Blavatsky and Besant, chosen for such a great mission, ideas were promulgated that should awaken in humanity the search for Truth. Through these disciples the forgotten Truths about the Law were returned to humanity eternal life man - the Law of his reincarnations, as well as the Law of cosmic justice - the Law of Karma.
The teaching of the Mahatmas, called theosophy and given through Blavatsky in the second half of the last century, was continued and developed in the first half of our century through Helena Ivanovna Roerich. After a detailed exposition, the final climax was given. This Teaching was called Agni Yoga, which means the Fiery Path.
Agni Yoga, giving in accordance with the time we are experiencing a new aspect of the One Eternal Truth, does not replace, but the fiery purification and affirmation of all former Great Teachings. Agni Yoga does not reject any Teaching that came before it, but only deepens and cleanses it from age-old accumulations. And it returns all the values that people lost by distorting the previous Testaments.
Agni Yoga, while paying tribute to atheism as an inevitable consequence of church distortions of religion, does not discard the Fundamentals of Religions, cleared of the misinterpretations of ignorant clergy.
The teaching of Agni Yoga is based on the veneration of the Great Hierarchy of Light, on the recognition of the high authority of the Teachers - the Mahatmas of Shambhala.
THE FEAT OF THE ROERICS IN OUR CENTURY
So, as stated above, at the end of the 19th century, the Russian woman E.P. Blavatsky brought the news of Shambhala and the Mahatmas to the world, introduced the West to the ancient philosophical teachings East. All this had an influence on a significant part of the Russian intelligentsia, including the artist Nikolai Konstantinovich Roerich.
Nikolai Konstantinovich was born in St. Petersburg in 1874, graduated from the Academy of Arts in 1897, and has been an academician since 1909. Since 1906 - director of the school of the Society for the Encouragement of the Arts. In the future, he is not only a world-famous artist, but also a public figure, a leader of world culture, a poet and writer, a philosopher and scientist, and a traveler.
The following authors wrote monographs and books about the life and work of Roerich, about his art, paintings: Dmitrieva (1959), Knyazeva (1963, 1968), Yuferova and Lukashov (1970), Belikov and Knyazeva (1972), Polyakova (1973), Alekhin (1973), Sidorov (On the heights. 1977, 1983). In addition, collections of articles “The Life and Work of Roerich” (1978), “Roerich Readings” (1980 and 1985), etc. were published.
Roerich became interested in ancient Indian philosophy and studied it; in it he seeks satisfactory answers to the fundamental questions of Genesis. He has a keen interest in the Ramakrishna Mission movement, which arose in 1897 at the initiative of Swami Vivekananda, the Indian humanist thinker and social activist. Nikolai Konstantinovich’s wife, Elena Ivanovna, also shares her interest in the East. She is also interested in Ramakrishna, Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore and ancient Indian philosophy.
The Roerichs are attracted primarily by the vital beginning of the East, by those great images, formulations and solutions to philosophical questions that, without a doubt, are of great value for our time. They have a firm conviction that their personal duty to society lies in bringing the spiritual heritage of the East closer to scientific discoveries and progressive social teachings.
The Roerichs are especially interested and inspired by information about the mysterious Shambhala - the country where the sages of the Mahatma's world live. Roerich thinks: “Aren’t legends a garland best flowers? Humanity does not create legends about the small, the insignificant and the pitiful. In any case, each legend contains something unusual. Yes, legends are not an abstraction, but reality itself.” And therefore the Roerichs believe in the reality of Shambhala. And why not believe them if they hear a call from there... “From the depths of Asia comes the ringing string of a sacred call: “Kalagiya!” This means: “Come to Shambhala!” Roerich writes. And also in the diary: “I bow to the ground to the Teachers of India. They brought true creativity into the chaos of our lives. They gave us a call. Calm, convincing, wise."
The Roerichs accepted the call. They had a cherished dream - to get to a distant, mysterious country where the sages of mankind live. We took steps to organize a scientific and artistic expedition to the countries of the East, in Central Asia- to India and Tibet. But these plans were completely disrupted by the war that began in 1914.
In 1916, Roerich moved with his family to Karelia for health reasons. In 1918, he visited Petrograd in connection with the reorganization of the work of the school of the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, and then found himself in Finland, cut off from his homeland.
The long-term wanderings of the Roerich family began in Finland. In 1919, exhibitions of paintings were organized in Sweden and Norway, then in Denmark and England, where a meeting with Tagore took place. Since 1920 - exhibitions and artistic and educational activities in the USA: the organization of the Union of Artists, then the Institute of United Arts and finally the International Art Center. In 1923, the Museum of Roerich's Works opened in New York. The world bows before him.
All the time, the Roerichs’ top plans include a trip to the East, in which they see their duty to their Motherland. In America, the Roerichs began organizing their expedition. In 1923 they left for India.
The famous Central Asian expedition begins, in which Nikolai Konstantinovich, Elena Ivanovna and the eldest son Yuri took part. The Roerichs have been preparing for it for dozens of years. And they not only prepared, but prepared themselves, like ancient priests for a meeting with a deity. “The purpose of the trip was to penetrate into the mysterious regions of Asia, into the secrets of philosophy and culture of the vast continent,” Roerich wrote. The Roerichs’ desire was to bring precious thousand-year accumulations of eastern wisdom as a gift to their homeland.
The expedition from London proceeds to Ladakh, Tibet, Western China. Somewhere along the way - the place is not specified, which is quite understandable - the Roerichs visited the reserved country of the Mahatmas, the legendary Shambhala. And here “all guesses received a basis, all fairy tales became reality.” In Roerich's notes one can find reports of conversations with the Mahatmas. Information about the conversations is extremely sparse, but Roerich does not deny the very fact of these meetings. Roerich spoke about what the expedition experienced, heard and saw, about the difficulties of the journey in his books “Altai - Himalayas” and “Heart of Asia”.
The Mahatmas told the Roerichs that the Age of Shambhala was coming - New Era powerful energies and possibilities. “The time is near when new energies, closest to the energy of Agni - cosmic fire, will approach and create new conditions for life. The era of Shambhala will come quickly.”
Having completed the expedition, the Roerich family settled in India, in the Western Himalayas - in Punjab, in the ancient Kullu valley. Here they organized the Urusvati Research Institute for the scientific processing of collected materials and for the study of the East. The expedition passed through places unknown to Western science and had to overcome incredible difficulties and dangers. She was a real scientific and human feat.
After the war, the Roerichs did not see any obstacles to returning to their homeland and were busy obtaining entry documents. They pack the paintings into boxes and prepare them for shipment to Moscow. But the Roerichs were never allowed to return under Stalin - an entry visa was not issued. N.K. Roerich died in 1947 without waiting for permission. The artist’s wife, Elena Ivanovna, was also not given permission to return to her homeland - she waited for him until her death (1955).
And only Khrushchev, during his visit to India, finally allowed Roerich’s sons to return, which was taken advantage of by the eldest of them, Yuri Nikolaevich, an outstanding orientalist, a remarkable expert oriental languages. In 1957, he returned from India to his homeland in order to stay here and continue his scientific work at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Fulfilling his father’s will, Yuri Nikolaevich donated 418 paintings by the artist to the state.
Having worked in Moscow for about three years, he died in 1960. The youngest son Svyatoslav Nikolaevich, an artist, lived in India. First time visiting Soviet Union in 1960, he often came to Russia and organized exhibitions of his paintings here. Svyatoslav Nikolaevich died in India in 1993.
A series of books of the Teachings of Shambhala, called Agni Yoga, was given by the Mahatmas through the wife of Nikolai Konstantinovich - Elena Ivanovna Roerich, a Russian woman of great philosophical mind. Her great feat was that she accepted, applied and wrote down this Teaching, and also transmitted its fragments to the world. She carried on extensive correspondence with many countries of the world. Some of her letters were published in Riga in 1946 in two large volumes (Letters of Helena Roerich, 1929 - 1938), in which explanations and additions to the Teaching are given, as well as answers to questions from employees and correspondent friends.
Agni Yoga was perceived through telepathic communication, through clairaudience and clairvoyance, when the student clearly hears the voice of the Teacher and clearly sees His appearance. Something like radio communication is established between the Teacher and the student, or rather, something like tele-hearing and television. This connection reaches great clarity.
“Urusvati preserves the insight of childhood that a Bright Teacher lives somewhere.” From childhood, “with his consciousness he is directed towards the destined feat. Strengthening herself internally, she receives a Vision admonishing her for her feat.” “From the first spatial sparks through all the lights to Samadhi, she will leave records that will form the threshold of the New World.” “Being the Mother of Agni Yoga is not at all easy. Only over time will people appreciate all the dedication that was necessary when proclaiming fiery power.”
Valentin Sidorov wrote in the magazine “Moscow” (1982. No. 8): “About her life, striking the imagination with constant burning of the spirit and superhuman tension of physical and internal forces, you could write a whole book. I think that over time such a book - and more than one - will be written. The main life and spiritual-creative feat of Elena Ivanovna is that, communicating with the Mahatmas, she made their fiery yoga (Agni Yoga) a property of our time.
Her work ethic was fantastic. Her letters were published in 1940 in Riga. They compiled two volumes. Of course, some of the letters, and even then in extracts. If it were all, there would be many volumes. But Elena Ivanovna has much more unpublished than published. Svyatoslav Nikolaevich told me that his archives contain one hundred and seventy works by Elena Ivanovna. One hundred seventy! Can you imagine how many of her works are waiting for their time and how many discoveries - sometimes, perhaps, the most unexpected - they promise people.”
In April 1958, an exhibition of paintings by N.K. Roerich, which his son Yuri brought from India, opened in Moscow. Only this year they begin to write about Roerich in our press. The nature of the first publications strictly followed the pattern: praise for paintings, blaspheme for philosophy, condemn for “idealism” and “mysticism.” It is stated that his ideology is naive, that his philosophical concepts are unacceptable to us, without explaining exactly why. But then the image of Roerich the philosopher gradually and carefully expanded...
