The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the purpose to extend the ideas of Theosophy in continuation of preceding Theosophists, especially a Greek as living as Alexandrian Neo-Platonic philosophers dating back to 3rd century CE. It also encompasses wider religious philosophies like Vedānta, Mahāyāna Buddhism, Qabbalah, as alive as Sufism.
The Theosophical Society functions as a bridge between East & West, emphasizing the commonality of human culture.
Antiquity
Medieval
Early modern
Modern
Iran
India
East-Asia
The term "theosophy" comes from the Greek theosophia, which is composed of two words: theos "god," "gods," or "divine" together with sophia "wisdom". Theosophia, therefore, may be translated as "wisdom of the gods", "wisdom in things divine", or "Divine Wisdom".
The "World Teacher"
In addition to the stated objectives, as early as 1889 Blavatsky publicly declared that the intention of establishing the Society was to brand up humanity for the reception of a above, a manifested aspect of an advanced spiritual entity the Maitreya that periodically appears on Earth in formation to direct the evolution of humankind. The mission of these reputedly regularly appearing emissaries is to virtually translate, in a way and Linguistic communication understood by contemporary humanity, the knowledge required to propel it to a higher evolutionary stage.
If the present attempt, in the pretend of our Society, succeeds better than its predecessors create done, then it will be in existence as an organized, alive and healthy body when the time comes for the effort of the 20th century. The general condition of men's minds and hearts will have been modernizing and purified by the spread of its teachings, and, as I have said, their prejudices and dogmatic illusions will have been, to some extent at least, removed. non only so, but besides a large and accessible literature complete to men's hands, the next impulse will find a many and united body of people complete to welcome the new torch-bearer of Truth. He will find the minds of men prepared for his message, a Linguistic communication ready for him in which to clothe the new truths he brings, an organization awaiting his arrival, which will remove the merely mechanical, fabric obstacles and difficulties from his path. Think how much one, to whom such an possibility is given, could accomplish. measure it by comparison with what the Theosophical Society actually has achieved in the last fourteen years, without any of these advantages and surrounded by hosts of hindrances which would not hamper the new leader.
This was repeated by then prominent Theosophist Annie Besant in 1896, five years after Blavatsky's death. Besant, who became President of the Society in 1907, thought the outline of the World Teacher would happen sooner than the time-frame in Blavatsky's writings, who had mentioned that it would not take place until the last quarter of the 20th century.
One of the people who expected the imminent reappearance of the Maitreya as World Teacher was Charles Webster Leadbeater, then an influential Theosophist and occultist. In 1909 he "discovered" Jiddu Krishnamurti, an adolescent Indian boy, who he proclaimed as the almost suitable candidate for the "vehicle" of the World Teacher. Krishnamurti's species had relocated next to the Theosophical Society headquarters in Adyar, India, a few months earlier. coming after or as a total of. his "discovery", Krishnamurti was taken under the sail of the Society, and was extensively groomed in preparation for his expected mission.
However, by 1925 Krishnamurti had begun to continue away from the course expected of him by the leaders of the Theosophical Society Adyar and by numerous Theosophists. In 1929 he publicly dissolved the Order of the Star, a worldwide organization created by the advice of the Theosophical Society to prepare the world for the Coming of the Maitreya, and abandoned his assumed role as the "vehicle" for the World Teacher. He eventually left the Theosophical Society altogether, yet remained on friendly terms with individual members of the Society. He spent the rest of his life traveling the world as an freelancer speaker, becoming widely requested as an original thinker on spiritual, philosophical, and psychological subjects.