The Masters of the Ancient Wisdom are claimed to be
enlightened beings originally identified by the
Theosophists Helena Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
,
Henry S. Olcott,
Alfred Percy Sinnett, and others. These Theosophists claimed to have met some of The Masters during their lifetimes in different parts of the world.
[Leadbeater, C.W. ''The Masters and the Path'' Adyar, Madras, India: 1925--Theosophical Publishing House--Diagram 5, Facing page 248, provides details about the "Great Ones" functioning on initiation levels five through nine. C.W. Leadbeater’s Spiritual Hierarchy Chart (The Bodhisattva=Maitreya)] Sometimes they are referred to by Theosophists as ''Elder Brothers of the Human Race'', ''Adepts'',
''Mahatmas'', or simply as ''The Masters''.
Helena Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
was the first person to introduce the concept of the Masters to the West. At first she talked about them privately, but she stated that after a few years two of these adepts,
Kuthumi
Koot Hoomi (also spelled Kuthumi, and frequently referred to simply as K.H.) is said to be one of the Mahatmas that inspired the founding of the Theosophical Society in 1875. In Theosophy it is believed that he engaged in a correspondence with t ...
(K.H.) and
Morya (M.), agreed to maintain a correspondence with two British Theosophists–
Alfred P. Sinnett and
A. O. Hume. This communication took place from 1880 to 1885, and during those years the reputed existence and objectives of the Mahatmas became public. The original letters are currently kept in the
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the Britis ...
in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
and have been published as the ''
Mahatma Letters
''The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett'' is a book published in 1923 by A. Trevor Barker. () According to Theosophical teachings, the letters were written between 1880 and 1884 by Koot Hoomi and Morya to A. P. Sinnett. The letters were previous ...
''.
Skeptical view
K. Paul Johnson suggests in his book ''The Masters Revealed: Madam Blavatsky and Myth of the Great White Brotherhood'' that the Masters that Madam Blavatsky claimed she had personally met are idealizations of certain people she had met during her lifetime.
[Johnson, K. Paul ''The Masters Revealed: Madam Blavatsky and Myth of the Great White Brotherhood'' Albany, New York: 1994 State University of New York Press]
See also
*
Ascended Masters
*
Ascended Master Teachings
Ascendency or ascendancy is a quantitative attribute of an ecosystem, defined as a function of the ecosystem's trophic network. Ascendency is derived using mathematical tools from information theory. It is intended to capture in a single inde ...
*
Alice Bailey
*
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
*
Benjamin Creme
*
Hodgson Report
*
Initiation (Theosophy)
* ''
K.H. Letters to C.W. Leadbeater''
*
Mahātmā
Mahatma (English pronunciation: , sa, महात्मा, translit=mahātmā) is an honorific used in India.
The term is commonly used for Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who is often referred to simply as "Mahatma Gandhi". Albeit less freque ...
*
Helena Roerich
*
Theosophy
Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion ...
References
Further reading
* Campbell, Bruce F. ''A History of the Theosophical Movement'' Berkeley:1980 University of California Press
* Godwin, Joscelyn ''The Theosophical Enlightenment'' Albany, New York: 1994 State University of New York Press
* Johnson, K. Paul ''The Masters Revealed: Madam Blavatsky and Myth of the Great White Brotherhood'' Albany, New York: 1994 State University of New York Press
*
Melton, J. Gordon ''Encyclopedia of American Religions'' 5th Edition New York:1996 Gale Research ISSN 1066-1212 Chapter 18--"The Ancient Wisdom Family of Religions" Pages 151-158; see chart on page 154 listing ''Masters of the Ancient Wisdom''; Also see Section 18, Pages 717-757 Descriptions of various Ancient Wisdom religious organizations
* Sender, Pablo ''Mahatmas versus Ascended Masters'' Wheaton, Il:Quest Summer 2011, The Theosophical Society in America
Online access
{{DEFAULTSORT:Masters Of The Ancient Wisdom
Esoteric cosmology
Theosophy
Theosophical philosophical concepts