Category: The Key To Theosophy (1889): H. P. Blavatsky

"Enq:  But are not the ethics of Theosophy identical with those taught by Buddha?   Theo:  Certainly, because these ethics are the soul of the Wisdom-Religion, and were once the common property of the initiates of all nations.   But Buddha was the first to embody these lofty ethics in his public teachings, and to [...]

"Enq:  You are often spoken of as "Esoteric Buddhists". Are you then all followers of Gautama Buddha?   Theo:  No more than musicians are all followers of Wagner. Some of us are Buddhists by religion; yet there are far more Hindus and Brahmins than Buddhists among us, and more Christian-born Europeans and Americans than converted [...]

"Enq:  Theosophy, then, is not, as held by some, a newly devised scheme?   Theo:  Only ignorant people can thus refer to it. It is as old as the world, in its teachings and ethics, if not in name, as it is also the broadest and most catholic system among all.   Enq:  How comes [...]

"Enq:  Can you attain the "Secret Wisdom" simply by study? Encyclopedias define Theosophy pretty much as Webster's Dictionary does, i.e., as "supposed intercourse with God and superior spirits, and consequent attainment of superhuman knowledge by physical means and chemical processes." Is this so?   Theo: I think not. Nor is there any lexicographer capable of [...]

"Enq:  Can you give me some proofs of its esotericism?   Theo:  The best proof you can have of the fact is that every ancient religious, or rather philosophical, cult consisted of an esoteric or secret teaching, and an exoteric (outward public) worship.   Furthermore, it is a well-known fact that the MYSTERIES of the [...]

"Enq:  Since Ammonius never committed anything to writing, how can one feel sure that such were his teachings?   Theo:  Neither did Buddha, Pythagoras, Confucius, Orpheus, Socrates, or even Jesus, leave behind them any writings. Yet most of these are historical personages, and their teachings have all survived.   The disciples of Ammonius (among whom [...]

"Enq:  What are your authorities for saying this of the ancient Theosophists of Alexandria?   Theo:  An almost countless number of well-known writers. Mosheim, one of them, says that:   "Ammonius taught that the religion of the multitude went hand-in-hand with philosophy, and with her had shared the fate of being by degrees corrupted and [...]

"Enq:  In the days of Ammonius there were several ancient great religions, and numerous were the sects in Egypt and Palestine alone. How could he reconcile them?   Theo:  By doing which we again try to do now. The Neo-Platonists were a large body, and belonged to various religious philosophies; so do our Theosophists.   In [...]

"Enquirer:   Theosophy and its doctrines are often referred to as a new fangled religion. Is it a religion?   Theosophist:   It is not. Theosophy is Divine Knowledge or Science.   Enq:   What is the real meaning of the term?   Theo:  "Divine Wisdom", θεοσοφία (Theosophia) or Wisdom of the gods, as θεογονία (theogonia), genealogy of [...]

"The purpose of this book is exactly expressed in its title, "The Key to Theosophy", and needs but few words of explanation. It is not a complete and exhaustive text-book of Theosophy, but only a key to unlock the door that leads to the deeper study.   It traces the broad outlines of the Wisdom [...]