Theosophical Society

• The Theosophical Society was founded by Westerners who drew inspiration from Indian thought and culture.
• Madame H.P. Blavatsky (1831-1891) of Russo-German birth laid the foundation of the movement in the United States in 1875.
  • Later Colonel M.S. Olcott (1832–1907) of the U.S. Army joined her.
  • In 1882 they shifted their headquarters to India at Adyar, an outskirt of Madras.
• The members of this society believe that a special relationship can be established between a person’s soul and God by contemplation, prayer, revelation etc.
• The Society accepts the Hindu beliefs in re-incarnationtion, karma and draws inspiration from the philosophy of the Upanishads and Samkhya, Yoga and Vedanta school of thought.
• The Indian work was, first of all took up the revival, strengthening and uplifting of the ancient religious, – Hinduism, Zoroastrianism and in Ceylon and Burma, Buddhism.
• It aims to work for universal Brotherhood of Humanity without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or colour.
• The Society also seeks to investigate the unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in man.
• The Theosophical Movement came to be allied with Hindu Renaissance.

Mrs. Annie Besant (1847–1933):

• The growth of the Theosophist Movement as a force in Indian history has been to a great extent with the election of Mrs. Annie Besant as its President after the death of Olcott in 1907.
  • Early in her life Mrs. Besant lost all faith in Christianity, divorced her husband, an Anglican clergyman, and came in contact with theosophy (1882).
  • In (1889) she formally joined the theosophical Society.
• After the death of Madame Blavatsky in 1891, Mrs. Besant felt lonely and decided to come to India.
• Mrs. Besant was well acquainted with Indian thought and culture and her approach was Vedantic as is very evident from her translation of the Bhagvat Gita. selfstudyhistory.com
• Madame Blavatsky’s main emphasis had been on the occult than spiritualism.
• Mrs. Besant found a bridge between matter and mind.
• Gradually Mrs. Besant turned a Hindu, not only in her views but also in her dress, food, company and social manners.
• In India, under her guidance, Theosophy became a movement of Hindu Revival.
• Talking of the Indian problem, Annie Besant once said: “The Indian work is, first of all, the revival, strengthening and uplifting of the ancient religions. This has brought with it a new self- respect, a pride in the past, a belief in the future, and as an inevitable result, a great wave of patriotic life, the beginning of the rebuilding of a nation.”
• Besant laid the foundation of the Central Hindu College in Benares in 1898 where both the Hindu religion and Western scientific subjects were taught.
  • The College became the nucleus for the formation of Benares Hindu University in 1916.
• Mrs. Besant also did much for the cause of female education.
• She also formed the Home Rule League on the pattern of the Irish Home Rule movement.
• The Theosophical Society provided a common denominator for the various sects and fulfilled the urge of educated Hindus.
• It stood for the development of a national spirit among the Indians.
  • This brought with it a new self-respect, a pride in the past, a belief in the future, and, as an inevitable result, a great wave of patriotic life, the beginning of a nation.
• However to the average Indian the philosophy of Theosophical Movement seemed rather vague and deficient in positive programme and as such its impact was limited to a small segment of the westernised class.