The Secret Doctrine The Synthesis of Science, Religion, and Philosophy [Paperback]

A three-volume 'synthesis of science, religion, and philosophy' by one of the nineteenth century's most controversial spiritualists.Madame Helena Blavatsky (18311891) was a co-founder of the theosophy movement in the United States, which was later extended to Europe and India. In The Secret Doctrine, published in 1888, Blavatsky aims to explain the spiritual origins of the world.Madame Helena Blavatsky (18311891) was a co-founder of the theosophy movement in the United States, which was later extended to Europe and India. In The Secret Doctrine, published in 1888, Blavatsky aims to explain the spiritual origins of the world.Ukrainian-born Madame Helena Blavatsky (18311891) was a powerful and controversial member of the spiritualist world and for a time famous for her powers as a medium. She was a co-founder of the theosophy movement in the United States, which she later extended to Europe and India, drawing from her extensive global travels and her familiarity with a broad range of belief systems, from Asian religions to New Orleans voodoo, as well as secret societies such as the Freemasons. Drawing from Hinduism and Buddhism, theosophy aimed to understand the mystic powers of the universe and promote the study of other religions. In The Secret Doctrine, published in 1888, Blavatsky aims to explain the spiritual origins of the world. Volume 1 looks at the world's 'cosmic evolution', the mystical symbolism that developed throughout this process, and scientific criticism.Preface; Introduction; Book I; Section 1. Cosmic Evolution: Seven Stanzas from the Book of Dzyan: 1. The night of the universe; 2. The idea of differentiation; 3. The awakening of kosmos; 4. The septenary hierarchies; 5. Fohat: the child of the septenary hierarchies; 6. Our world, its growth and development, theosophical misconceptions, explanations concerning the globes and the monads; 6. Continued; 7. The parents of man on Earth; Summing up; Section 2. The Evolution of Symbolism in its Approximatl36