Knowra Helena Blavatsky Helena Blavatsky Helena Blavatsky (1831–1891) was a Russian-born occultist and writer who co-founded the Theosophical Society and helped shape modern Theosophy through works including Isis Unveiled and The Secret Doctrine .
Theosophical Society : An organization founded in 1875 to promote the study of religion, philosophy, and science and investigate unexplained laws of nature. Blavatsky co-founded it in New York with Henry Steel Olcott and William Quan Judge.
Isis Unveiled : Blavatsky's 1877 book arguing that ancient wisdom underlies religion, science, and philosophy. This early work announced her project of comparing religions and challenging materialism.
Henry Steel Olcott : An American lawyer and spiritualist who co-founded the Theosophical Society and became its first president. He was Blavatsky's closest institutional collaborator and accompanied her to India.
Society for Psychical Research : A British organization founded in 1882 to investigate claims of psychic phenomena using systematic inquiry. Its investigation of Blavatsky produced the report that made her alleged phenomena a public controversy.
Alice Bailey : A British-American esoteric writer whose teachings developed from and later diverged from Theosophy. Bailey carried Theosophical themes into a distinct twentieth-century spiritual movement.
Modern Theosophy : A nineteenth-century spiritual movement combining ideas about spiritual evolution, ancient wisdom, and the unity of religions. Blavatsky's writings established many of its central teachings and vocabulary.
The Secret Doctrine : Blavatsky's 1888 two-volume work presenting a cosmology based on ancient stanzas and comparative religion. It is her fullest exposition of cosmic cycles, spiritual evolution, and the doctrine of root races.
William Quan Judge : An Irish-American lawyer who co-founded the Theosophical Society and later led its American branch. His partnership with Blavatsky helped establish the society before their movement divided.
Hodgson Report : An 1885 Society for Psychical Research report concluding that Blavatsky's occult phenomena were fraudulent. It directly challenged her claims and remains disputed in assessments of her reputation.
Anthroposophy : A spiritual movement founded by Rudolf Steiner that applies esoteric ideas to education, agriculture, medicine, and the arts. Steiner's movement emerged from a break with the Theosophical Society and its leadership.
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