Key
Concepts of Theosophy
1) Infinitude
Nature is infinite in space and time -- boundless and
eternal, unfathomable and ineffable. The all-pervading essence of infinite
nature can be called space, consciousness, life, substance, force, energy,
divinity -- all of which are fundamentally one.
2) The finite and the infinite
Nature is a unity in diversity, one in essence, manifold
in form. The infinite whole is composed of an infinite number of finite wholes
-- the relatively stable and autonomous things (natural systems or artefacts)
that we observe around us. Every natural system is not only a conscious,
living, substantial entity, but is consciousness-life-substance, of a
particular range of density
and form. Infinite nature is an abstraction, not an
entity; it therefore does not act or change and has no attributes. The finite,
concrete systems of which it is composed, on the other hand, move and change,
act and interact, and possess attributes. They are composite, inhomogeneous,
and ultimately transient.
3) Vibration/worlds within worlds
The one essence manifests not only in infinitely
varied forms, and on infinitely varied scales, but also in infinitely varying
degrees of spirituality and substantiality, comprising an infinite spectrum of
vibration or density. There is therefore an endless series of interpenetrating,
interacting worlds within worlds, systems within systems.
The energy-substances of higher planes or subplanes (a
plane being a particular range of vibration) are relatively more homogeneous
and less differentiated than those of lower planes or subplanes.
4) Space and time
Just as boundless space is comprised of endless finite
units of space, so eternal duration is comprised of endless finite units of
time. Space is the infinite totality of worlds within worlds, but appears
predominantly empty because only a tiny fraction of the energy-substances
composing it are perceptible and tangible to an entity at any particular
moment. Time is a concept we use to quantify the rate at which events occur; it
is a function of
change and motion, and presupposes a succession of
cause and effect. Every entity is extended in space and changes 'in time'.
5) Causation/karma
All change (of position, substance, or form) is the
result of causes; there is no such thing as absolute chance. Nothing can happen
for no reason at all for nothing exists in isolation; everything is part of an
intricate web of causal interconnections and interactions. The keynote of
nature is harmony: every
action is automatically followed by an equal and
opposite reaction, which sooner or later rebounds upon the originator of the
initial act. Thus, all our thoughts and deeds will eventually bring us
'fortune' or 'misfortune' according to the degree to which they were harmonious
or disharmonious. In the long term, perfect justice prevails in nature.
6) Analogy
Because nature is fundamentally one, and the same
basic habits and structural, geometric, and evolutionary principles apply
throughout, there are correspondences between microcosm and macrocosm. The
principle of analogy -- as above, so below -- is a vital tool in our efforts to
understand reality.
7) Relativity
All finite systems and their attributes are relative.
For any entity, energy-substances vibrating within the same range of
frequencies as its outer body are 'physical' matter, and finer grades of
substance are what we call energy, force, thought, desire, mind, spirit,
consciousness, but these are just as material to entities on the corresponding
planes as our physical world is to us. Distance and time units are also
relative: an atom is a solar system on its own scale, reembodying perhaps
millions of times in what for us is one second, and our whole galaxy may be a
molecule in some supercosmic entity, for which a million of our years is just a
second. The range of scale is infinite: matter-consciousness is both infinitely
divisible and infinitely aggregative.
8) Hierarchy
All natural systems consist of smaller systems and
form part of larger systems. Hierarchies extend both 'horizontally' (on the
same plane) and 'vertically' or inwardly (to higher and lower planes). On the
horizontal level, subatomic particles form atoms, which combine into molecules,
which arrange themselves into cells, which form tissues and organs, which form
part of organisms, which form part of ecosystems, which form part of planets, solar
systems, galaxies, etc. The constitution of worlds and of the organisms that
inhabit them form 'vertical' hierarchies, and can be divided into several
interpenetrating layers or elements, from physical-astral to psychomental to
spiritual-divine, each of which can be further divided.
The human constitution can be divided up in several
different ways: e.g. into a trinity of body, soul, and spirit; or into 7
'principles' -- a lower quaternary consisting of physical body, astral
model-body, life-energy, and lower thoughts and desires, and an upper triad
consisting of higher mind (reincarnating ego), spiritual intuition, and inner
god. A planet or star can be regarded as a 'chain' of 12 globes, existing on 7
planes, each globe comprising several subplanes.
The highest part of every multilevelled organism or
hierarchy is its spiritual summit or 'absolute', meaning a collective entity or
'deity' which is relatively perfected in relation to the hierarchy in question.
But the most 'spiritual' pole of one hierarchy is the most 'material' pole of
the next, superior hierarchy, just as the lowest pole of one hierarchy is the
highest pole of the one below.
9) From within outwards
Each level of a hierarchical system exercises a
formative and organizing influence on the lower levels (through the patterns
and prototypes stored up from past cycles of activity), while the lower levels
in turn react upon the higher. A system is therefore formed and organized
mainly from within outwards, from the inner levels of its constitution, which
are relatively more
enduring and developed than the outer levels. This
inner guidance is sometimes active and selfconscious, as in our acts of free
will (constrained, however, by karmic tendencies from the past), and sometimes
it is automatic and passive, giving rise to our own automatic bodily functions
and habitual and instinctual behavior, and to the orderly, lawlike operations
of nature in
general. The 'laws' of nature are therefore the habits
of the various grades of conscious entities that compose reality, ranging from
higher intelligences (collectively
forming the universal mind) to elemental nature-forces.
10) Consciousness and its vehicles
The core of every entity -- whether atom, human,
planet, or star -- is a monad, a unit of consciousness-life-substance, which
acts through a series of more material vehicles or bodies. The monad or self in
which the consciousness of a particular organism is focused is animated by
higher monads and expresses
itself through a series of lesser monads, each of
which is the nucleus of one of the lower vehicles of the entity in question.
The following monads can be distinguished: the divine or galactic monad, the
spiritual or solar monad, the higher human or planetary-chain monad, the lower
human or globe monad, and the animal, vital-astral, and physical monads. At our
present stage of evolution, we are essentially the lower human monad, and our
task is to raise our consciousness from the animal-human to the spiritual-human
level of it.
11) Evolutionary unfoldment
Evolution means the unfolding, the bringing into
active manifestation, of latent powers and faculties 'involved' in a previous
cycle of evolution. It is the building of ever fitter vehicles for the
expression of the mental and spiritual powers of the monad. The more
sophisticated the lower vehicles of an
entity, the greater their ability to express the
powers locked up in the higher levels of its constitution. Thus all things are
alive and conscious, but the degree of manifest life and consciousness is
extremely varied.
Evolution results from the interplay of inner impulses
and environmental stimuli. Ever building on and modifying the patterns of the
past, nature is infinitely creative.
12) Cyclic evolution/re-embodiment
Cyclic evolution is a fundamental habit of nature. A
period of evolutionary activity is followed by a period of rest. All natural
systems evolve through re-embodiment. Entities are born from a seed or nucleus
remaining from the previous evolutionary cycle of the monad, develop to
maturity, grow old, and pass away, only to re-embody in a new form after a
period of rest. Each new
embodiment is the product of past karma and present
choices.
13) Birth and Death
Nothing comes from nothing: matter and energy can be
neither created nor destroyed, but only transformed. Everything evolves from
preexisting material. The growth of the body of an organism is initiated on
inner planes, and involves the transformation of higher energy-substances into
lower, more
material ones, together with the attraction of matter
from the environment.
When an organism has exhausted the store of vital
energy with which it is born, the coordinating force of the indwelling monad is
withdrawn, and the organism 'dies', i.e. falls apart as a unit, and its
constituent components go their separate ways. The lower vehicles decompose on
their respective subplanes, while, in the case of humans, the reincarnating ego
enters a dreamlike state of rest and assimilates the experiences of the
previous incarnation. When the time comes for the next embodiment, the
reincarnating
ego clothes itself in many of the same atoms of
different grades that it had used previously, bearing the appropriate karmic
impress. The same basic processes of birth, death,
and rebirth apply to all entities, from atoms to humans to stars.
14) Evolution and involution of worlds
Worlds or spheres, such as planets and stars, are
composed of, and provide the field for the evolution of, 10 kingdoms -- 3
elemental kingdoms, mineral, plant, animal, and human kingdoms, and 3 spiritual
kingdoms. The impulse for a new manifestation of a world issues from its
spiritual summit or hierarch, from which emanate a series of steadily denser
globes or planes; the One expands into the many. During the first half of the
evolutionary cycle (the arc of descent) the energy-substances of each plane
materialize or condense, while during the second half (the arc of ascent) the
trend is towards
dematerialization or etherealization, as globes and
entities are reabsorbed into the spiritual hierarch for a period of nirvanic
rest. The descending arc is characterized by the evolution of matter and
involution of spirit, while the ascending arc is characterized by the evolution
of spirit and involution of matter.
15) Evolution of the monad
In each grand cycle of evolution, comprising many
planetary embodiments, a monad begins as an unselfconsciousness god-spark,
embodies in every kingdom of nature for the purpose of gaining experience and
unfolding its inherent faculties, and ends the cycle as a self conscious god.
Elementals ('baby monads') have no free choice, but automatically act in
harmony with one
another and the rest of nature. In each successive
kingdom differentiation and individuality increase, and reach their peak in the
human kingdom with the attainment of selfconsciousness and a large measure of
free will.
In the human kingdom in particular, self-directed evolution
comes into its own. There is no superior power granting privileges or handing
out favours; we evolve according to our karmic merits and demerits. As we
progress through the spiritual kingdoms we become increasingly at one again
with nature, and willingly 'sacrifice' our circumscribed selfconscious freedoms
(especially the freedom to 'do our own thing') in order to work in peace and
harmony with the greater whole of which we form an integral part. The highest
gods of one hierarchy or
world-system begin as elementals in the next. The
matter of any plane is composed of aggregated, crystallized monads in their
nirvanic sleep, and the spiritual and divine entities embodied as planets and
stars are the electrons and atomic nuclei -- the material building blocks -- of
worlds on even larger scales. Evolution is without beginning and without end,
an endless adventure through the fields of infinitude, in which there are
always new worlds of experience in which to become selfconscious masters of
life.
16) Universal brotherhood
There is no absolute separateness in nature. All
things are made of the same essence, have the same spiritual-divine potential,
and are interlinked by magnetic ties of sympathy. It is impossible to realize
our full potential, unless we recognize the spiritual unity of all living
beings and make universal brotherhood the keynote of our lives.
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Foundation of the Original
Theosophical Society 1875
The first Theosophical Society was founded in New York on
November 17th 1875 by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky,
Colonel Henry Steel Olcott, William Quan Judge and others.
The Theosophical Movement now consists of a diverse range of
organizations which carry the Theosophical Tradition forward.
Cardiff Theosophical Society has been promoting Theosophy since 1908
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मूल थियोसोफिकल सोसायटी 1875 फाउंडेशन
पहले थियोसोफिकल सोसायटी को न्यूयॉर्क में स्थापित किया गया था
17 नवंबर Helena Petrovna Blavatsky द्वारा 1875,
कर्नल Henry Steel Olcott, William Quan Judge और दूसरों.
थियोसोफिकल आंदोलन अब एक विविध रेंज के होते हैं
आगे थियोसोफिकल परंपरा ले जो संगठनों.
कार्डिफ थियोसोफिकल सोसायटी 1908 के बाद से ब्रह्मविद्या को बढ़ावा देने की गई है
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Mūla thiyōsōphikala
sōsāyaṭī 1875 phā'uṇḍēśana
Pahalē thiyōsōphikala sōsāyaṭī kō
n'yūyŏrka mēṁ sthāpita kiyā gayā thā
17 Navambara Helena Petrovna Blavatsky dvārā 1875,
Kamala Henry Steel Olcott, aura dūsarōṁ.
Thiyōsōphikala āndōlana aba ēka vividha
rēn̄ja kē hōtē haiṁ
Āgē thiyōsōphikala paramparā lē jō
saṅgaṭhanōṁ.
Kārḍipha thiyōsōphikala sōsāyaṭī 1908
kē bāda sē brahmavidyā
kō baṛhāvā
dēnē kī ga'ī hai
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