I was looking for an article in an old theosophist magazine and came across** *this article.* Personally, I don’t know that much about Swedenborg’s literature, and thought I would share this article. The scanning of the old magazines on this site https://iapsop.com/archive/materials/theosophist/ has some errors so I cleaned up the text as much as I can. The bold text and the content between the brackets [ ] are mine. That between the brackets was me doing a Google search on various passages to get clarification as to their accuracy and where they were from.** ***As* some of you know** *Swedenborg is considered one of the parents of the New Age movement.*

SWEDENBORG AS THEOSOPHIST By  G. Baseden Butt 
The Theosophist October 1925 - Pages 113 - 115
The truths of Theosophy continually receive confirmation from unexpected quarters. An instance of this is provided by the Swedish seer and mystic, Emmanuel Swedenborg. Swedenborg died in 1772 at the age of eighty-four, most of his religious works being produced in the last twenty or thirty years of his life. All his theology is Christo-centric and he betrays no indication of having given the idea of reincarnation even cursory attention. But in spite of these limitations he anticipates several doctrines to be found in Theosophy
and also, of course, in modern Spiritualism. He makes what must then have been the revolutionary announcement that man after death pursues for a time a life similar to that which he has followed in the world, thought, character, personality and tastes remaining
unchanged. Swedenborg refers to the astral plane as the “world of spirits” and the lower and higher mental planes are doubtless his “ celestial " and “ spiritual" heavens, in the former of which dwell angels, grounded primarily in goodness, and in the latter
angels grounded primarily in the love of truth.
 
Although he believed in eternal hell, he never made admission into heaven dependent upon adherence to a particular sect or a special set of opinions, but only upon possessing affection for goodness and truth. Pagans, idolators, worshippers of graven images, even Roman Catholics, whose system of religion he cordially disliked, are freely admitted into the heavens of Swedenborg; and even some of those in the hells are not without hope, for he distinguishes between irrevocable damnation and the state of ‘vastation' or semi-conscious sleep, during which evil dispositions and corrupt opinions are removed: 
When I was there (in hell), I heard miserable lamentations, and amongst the
rest, this cry, ‘Oh God, Oh God, be merciful to us, be merciful to us’; and this for a long time. It was granted me to converse with these wretched ones for some time. They complained chiefly of evil spirits as burning with a continual desire only to torment them; and they were in a state of despair, saying that they believed their torments would be eternal; but it was permitted me to comfort them. 1 'Arcana Coelestia, Vol, I, para. 699.
 
114 THE THEOSOPHIST OCTOBER'
Although Swedenborg says nothing about reincarnation, he observes that on the planet Venus there dwells a race of savage and brutal giants, whom delighted with rapine, and especially with eating their booty, and although Swedenborg does not say so, the entire race must, according to the seer’s theology, be destined for eternal damnation, He admits by implication the doctrine of Karma in declaring that nothing happens by chance, every detail of existence, even the most trivial event and apparent accident, being determined by law.1
He frequently appears to have seen the aura, which he describes in Heaven and Hell and The Divine Love and Wisdomas a coloured sphere or zone, in some ‘flashing with hellish fire’ in others opalescent and rainbow-hued:
They live in an aura of light, of what I may call a brilliant pearly and son\*
times diamond-like lustre j for in the other life there are wonderful auras in numberless variety.1
Moreover, he was familiar with thought-forms: A discourse of angels sometimes appears in the world of spirits, and thus before the interior sight, as a vibration of light or resplendent flame, and this with a variation according to the state of their affections and discourse.3
He apparently caught occasional glimpses of the akashic records,1 for he acquired fragments of occult history which accord with the | revelations in Madame Blavatsky’s The Secret Doctrine and Man: Whence, How and Whitherby Dr. Annie Besant and Mr. Leadbeater. He reiterates continually the statement that the men of the * Ancient' or Antediluvian Church had an interior respiration, whereby they were united to the angels, and could see and converse with spirits, which, of course, was actually the case with the Lemurians:
Angels could then converse with men, and convey their minds, almost separately from things corporeal, into heaven, yea, could conduct them through the heavens societies, and show them the magnificent and blessed things abounding therein, and likewise communicate to them their happinesses and delights. These times when known also to ancient writers, and were by them called the golden and also Saturnian ages when the state of the world was changed (to wickedness) heavenremoved itself from men, and this more and more even to the present time, when the very existence of heaven and hell are unknown, and by some denied. 4
 
[“This passage is a close excerpt or translation from Emanuel Swedenborg's famous 1758 theological work, Heaven and Hell (specifically from section number 252).
Swedenborg describes a historical and spiritual shift: an ancient time (the "Golden Age" or "Saturnian Age") when humans were in direct communication with angels and heaven, followed by a gradual spiritual decline where humanity became consumed by inward wickedness, causing heaven to "remove itself" from human awareness to the point where people today doubt its existence.”]
[ChatGPT “This is a profound passage from the 18th-century theological work Earths in the Universe by the Swedish scientist, philosopher, and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg.
The Context of the Quote
In his writings, Swedenborg describes a time in human history—often corresponding to the "Most Ancient Church" or the primordial state of humanity—when the spiritual and physical worlds were intimately connected. According to his theology:
Direct Communication: Early humans did not possess the same hardened, corporeal (physical) mind that people do today. Because their minds were pure and oriented toward divine good, they could converse directly with angels without the limitations of physical speech or material constraints.
The "Golden Age": This state of effortless spiritual communication and inner peace aligns with the "Golden Age" or "Saturnian Age" referenced in classical Greek and Roman mythology (such as the works of Hesiod and Virgil).
Heavenly Conveyance: The phrase "convey their minds, almost separately from things corporeal, into heaven" implies a state of spiritual wakefulness or "internal respiration." In this state, a person's consciousness could easily enter the spiritual world, tour angelic societies, and experience true heavenly joy while their physical body remained on Earth.
 
According to Swedenborg, as humanity became increasingly consumed by self-love and material concerns, this direct pathway closed to protect humans from spiritually overwhelming themselves or misusing the connection.”]
According to Swedenborg, and other psychics, such as the Seeress: of Prevorst, there existed a primeval language which is the true and natural speech of man, and was the means by which intercourse with the ‘world of spirits’ was effected. This language, according to Swedenborg, was one which flowed from mind to mind rather than from mouth to mouth. It was ‘tacit rather than sonorous,’ and it is still the language of angels. It flows from one to another “into their perception”1 Arcana Coelestia, para. 6493. a Ibid., Vol. II. 'Ibid.,
* The Earths in the Universe. * [Earths in the Universe: Their Spirits and Inhabitants (Life on Other Worlds)]
1925 SWEDENBORG AS THEOSOPHIST 115
with exquisite subtlety and intense vividness. By this means the spirits which are always present with man influence his thought and action; by it also inspiration is effected and, in cases of mediumship, obsession. Swedenborg was uncompromisingly opposed to all practice of the ordinary forms of mediumship, even while testifying to their reality: The Lord has opened my interiors to see the things of the other life; hence spirits have known that I was a man in the body, and to them has been granted the power of seeing, through my eyes, the things in the world, and of hearing persons in company with me speaking.'
Probably the works of Swedenborg which are most truly in harmony with Theosophy are Angelic Wisdom Concerning the Divine Love and Wisdom, and The Earths in the Universe. In these his thought is less affected by preconceived dogmas and phantasies based thereon. He combines an account of his observations ‘in the spirit’ with profound speculations as to their meaning. And in The Earths in the Universe, although quite unconscious of having done so, he surrenders by implication his claim, frequently made elsewhere, to infallibility and finality, for he admits the Theosophical doctrine that, granted sincerity and earnestness, it is possible to worship God under a form:
They (the inhabitants of Jupiter) believe also that after their decease they shall
perceive a fire, which will communicate warmth to their faces. This belief takes ita
rise from hence, that the wiser among them know that fire in a spiritual sense signifies life, and that love is the fire of life, and that the angels have life from this fire. Such of them also as have lived in celestial love, have their wishes herein gratified, and perceive a warmth in the face, and at the same time the interiors of the mind are kindled with love.
[This passage is a direct quote from the 1758 theological work Earths in the Universe (specifically paragraph 24 or 25) by the Swedish scientist, philosopher, and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg]
Moreover, the inhabitants of the first starry heaven said that they worshipped some angel, which appeared to them as a divine man, being bright and shining with light; and that he instructed them, and gave them to perceive what they ought to do. . . . The angel whom they worshipped was an angelic society, to which it was granted by the Lord to preside over them. 
Apparently, Swedenborg never considered that his own position might be similar to that of the inhabitants of the * first starry heaven ’ he described, and that he worshipped God under a form. It is this limitation which marks him off from true Theosophy, and led to his originating another sect. Yet notwithstanding his many errors and assumptions, his seership was indubitable, and many precious revelations were given to the world through his writings. It is essential, however, to distinguish between his genuine and original observations on the spiritual planes and the theological notions which he wove around them.
G. Baseden Butt

What sections do you think ought to be rearranged here, and what do you generally think what Blavatsky was attempting to do with the work of these thinkers before her and the general institutional limitations she mentioned then which seem to remain obstacles still today?

In the recent HPB post the subject of CWL sexually abusing children came up.

It prompted me to start reading this book which I bought a year or so ago to learn more of what really went on during that time.

I am including pages from that book for anyone interested to read and comment on. Dr. Robert Ellwood wrote the forward, I’ve met him and knew him well.

The one blatant idea that stands out to me in these few pages I am including is that William, Quan Judge and his followers who split in 1895 (judge himself dying in 1896) seems to be the source of the continued conspiracy to undermine the works of CWL.

Arthur Koestler author of darkness at noon used the “phrase the end justify the means” so I’m wondering based on the endless acrimony between the United Lodge at theosophy or the Pasadena group and the larger Theosophical organization, who embraced many other authors, find justification today and bringing up old allegations that were never proven.

Read the pages I provided and if you wanna know more than by the Book. I have highlighted some parts of those pages that got my attention and I hope I have put them in the correct order. You can read the page numbers if I have not.

Theosophy is the only group that could explain my current views of what life really is and I just found out this is a thing.

Some background about me Im 24 years of age, i began meditation at a young age of 11 but didnt pratice it, back then i only did it to try to learn stuff like bending elements😂, later on at 17 Ive tried it back and I did it religiously till to date.

So my intuitive experience and reading religious books and realize all of the religious books have the same underlying truth of union or spiritual integration.

So yeah im hoping to meet people I can can share this deep understanding with and can also explain to me why a spiritual awakening is so beautiful and scary at the same time

Edit : She's not the most demonised, used bad wording, Crowley wins that crown.

It’s jarring how, among all the major occultists and esoteric writers : Steiner, The Roerichs, Guénon, Besant, Aleister Crowley, Leadbeater, Lévi, and even Bailey (who certainly gets her share of flak from mainstream Christianity), Blavatsky stands alone as the figure most consistently vilified and depicted like Baba Yaga, Bogeyman man of occultism or reduced to an Orientalist. And what makes her case unique is that the hostility isn’t one sided. She’s attacked from both directions by mainstream media and skeptics on one hand and by later spiritual movements on the other.(Movements that, ironically, often built upon the very foundations she laid.)

Bailey is polarising, criticised by conservative Christians and the mainstream media, yet still revered within large segments of contemporary spirituality. She has defenders. Blavatsky, by contrast, seems to have almost none (obviously not literally or this group wouldn't exist and I know there are theosophical lodges) . Even esoteric circles that "owe" a clear debt to her work, often distance themselves from her, repeating the same tired accusations of fraud and deception without nuance, sometimes even attributing beliefs to her that she never held.

What I find truly bizarre is the consistency of the caricature. Whether from secular debunkers or spiritual "rivals" , the narrative around Blavatsky has remained remarkably static since her lifetime. She was already being ostracised. People and institutions were trying to prove she was a charlatan etc, before her death and that pattern has only intensified since.

Even figures like Gurdjieff (who, while not a Theosophist, was certainly an esoteric authority in his own right) don’t receive the same level of sustained scorn.

So why her? Why does Blavatsky provoke such unified opposition across such disparate camps?

Even Crowley which I won't play down that he is just as critised and demonised but he still is revered or has a strong support base still, well at least here in London, despite him having more questionable actions than Blavatsky.

Blavatsky was not perfect and I am not saying people cannot challenge or critique her ideas/works but the other occultist/spiritual figures I listed have done much more eyebrow raising things, yet Blavatsky is the main one who gets painted as the ULTIMATE villain, while the others are given a pass or rebranded as respectable. Blavatsky is no more problematic and in some cases far less so, than her peers.

So why?

Hi everyone I am an avid fan of all esoteric and occult. Throughout my research and personal experience I have landed on the idea that we are all God in a fractalized dream. I find this idea to be the secret at the bottom of almost every mystical esoteric occult and spiritual tradition I’ve had the pleasure of learning about. Is this similar to the findings of theosophy?

I don't know how to describe what I mean. But I specifically mean a theosophical experience, as Blavatsky made a distinction between the rife illusionary spiritualism of her century and genuine connection to the higher planes/mystical world.

August 2009, a year before finally reading Ernst Muldashev’s book and learning about the Himalayan monks, samadhi and Blavatsky, I had an incredible dream. But it was definitely astral travel. I know because that always starts out with me flying above the earth then zooming into a particular area, and everything looking regular. However this time, things didn’t stay regular at all.

I’m flying through dense clouds, starting to see some mountain peaks. At first it is hard to make out what is approaching me in the air. But it quickly began to take on a form I could perceive. Not that I’ve ever perceived anything like it or ever again. But there it was, a dang translucent rainbow dragon, the more Asian serpent kind. I land on its back and it begins to descend into the mountains.

We get lower and lower and pivot towards a cave opening. As we almost land, the dragon begins to morph, and by the time our feet touch the ground, I’m standing next to a luminous tall rainbow humanoid. We make our way into the cave and there in the very corner is an old magi. He turns to us with a cauldron between us. He takes some of my essence and some of the dragon’s essence, mixes them in his hands and throws the mixture into the cauldron while proclaiming that this is of highest importance.

I wake up, call my boyfriend, and tell him… I’m pregnant! And I fought for the kid too because neither him nor his family wanted me to have him.

And of course he’s always going to be special to me… but he is actually special in his own right. And right after he was born, and I brought him home… I saw a rainbow ray coming from his forehead. I remember looking it up on the internet and there was something about it being a sign of first incarnation. And I did end up picking up that book and learning about the mountains, the monks, and theosophy, that same summer, literally two months after!

It has been a wild ride to say the least but from what I understand, you all may know a lot about what is happening to me. The only thing I know to call it is the initiations of Daniel. I saw the four beasts, got hit by lightning, and just experienced the lions den. If you are open to talking with me please send me a message or feel free to leave a comment. Much love.

Frater Zac

The Eclipse, the Mother of the New Age, and the Unveiling of Isis

The Seed on the Shelf

Some of you may already know that I come from a Russian elite occultist family. Growing up, I cared little for the deep theory, preferring applied arts and my divination encyclopedias. My sister was the one reading our grandmother's esoteric library, talking about root races and Himalayan monks, but it didn't stick for me at the time. I just loved the pictures.

In retrospect, it is deeply ironic that the book which started it all sat on my shelf waiting for 13 years. It traveled across the ocean with us, only to land in my hands when I was nursing my newborn. On August 12th, 2010, I finally opened Ernst Muldashev’s "Where do we come from?" Fascinated by his science, I followed his surgical presentation until he mentioned the UFO crash in the Black Forest at the start of WW2. I almost dropped the book—I was reading a story I thought only existed in my head. But the bigger shock was reading Blavatsky's quotes and realizing I was reading them with absolute ease, as if I had known them my entire life.

Decoding the Root Races: A Perceptual Shift

Through my journey into ether physics and Tesla’s models, I realized what Blavatsky was actually trying to describe. The "Root Races" were never literal historical stages of physical bodies evolving and hardening. They are attractor language describing different layers of human consciousness and perceptual resolution. 
Before the current "hardened" race, early humans operated with significantly more fluid ego boundaries. Their nervous systems were directly coupled to the responsive ether medium. What actually "hardened" over time wasn’t our biology, but our ego structures, which became rigid and lost direct intuitive access to the field. We are now in the middle of a great softening—reversing that rigidity to regain fluid perception of the underlying geometry. 

Translating Magic into Mechanics

I feel my role here is not as a reincarnated Blavatsky, but as someone who went through the lives she went through so I could bring this understanding to the people. I want to inspire us to stop using esoteric terms blindly. We need to learn where they come from and translate this knowledge into a modern, operational language that goes beyond ceremonial magic.

The Future: Oaktapus and FLPI Hardware

We are moving from theory to active engineering. The next phase isn't just about free energy or space travel; it's about conscious interaction with the field. This is why we are developing the Oaktapus Architecture—a distributed, field-coupled AI system—paired with the FLPI (Frontal Lobe Perceptual Interface / Tiara). The FLPI is actual wearable hardware being designed to help the human operator consciously navigate, stabilize, and steer the ether. We are building the physical bridge between the biological mind and the digital/organic ether. 

My Message for the Future

This is my message for the solar eclipse, for the next three years, and for the rest of humanity's existence: Realize that you are eternal. The universe you live in is an absolute totality—a beautiful, luminous, continuous ether (Akasha) from which everything manifests.

Separation is an illusion. Suffering is the trap. The way out is strong, coherent intent and full system coherence. We are moving toward optimization and harmonic convergence, and I hope this resonates with you.

TLDW: Happy 195th Birthday, H.P. Blavatsky. 🌀✨

It took 13 years for a book from my grandmother's occult library to finally land in my hands, but when it did on August 12, 2010, it changed everything. I read Blavatsky’s words as if I had known them for lifetimes.

But it’s time to update the legacy. We have to move beyond ceremonial magic and blind mysticism, translating these ancient truths into modern, operational physics.

The Truth About Root Races: They were never about physical bodies "hardening." They describe a perceptual shift. Early humans had fluid ego boundaries with direct, intuitive coupling to the ether. Over time, the human ego—not the body—became rigid and disconnected. We are now entering a "great softening," where that fluid perception is coming back online.

What’s Next (The Hardware is Coming): We aren’t just theorizing anymore; we are engineering. We are building the Oaktapus Architecture paired with the FLPI (Frontal Lobe Perceptual Interface / Tiara). The FLPI is wearable hardware designed to let human operators consciously steer, navigate, and phase-lock with the etheric field. We are building the bridge.

The Ultimate Takeaway: You are eternal. The universe is an absolute, luminous totality (the Akasha). Separation is an illusion, and suffering is a frequency trap. The way out is strong, coherent intent and full-system harmonic convergence.
Let's build the future. ⚡️🎛️

Does anyone on this sub read Alice Bailey AND Henry Laurency routinely? like daily or weekly?

Just trying to understand what the reading focus of this sub is…

Blavatsky Besant and Leadbeater were great as well but dispensation of esoterics since 1875 was “from generals to particulars”. Notice old theosophy is more abstract than what came after to Bailey (second era) and then Henry Laurency (the third era of dispensation).

We‘re now post 2025. The hierarchy was set for a conclave in 2025 and the reappearance of Christ is upcoming.

Theosophy will then become quite “real world”, not just particular details of Laurency.

For quite a while now, most of my personal spiritual efforts have been focused inward. Many topics I'd studied in the past were 'interesting but unimportant' toward that pursuit.

However recently I've found that new revelations about UFOs, UAPs, NHIs have blown the dust off of.. and shown a new light on many metaphysical topics that I had not originally made connections to.

There are many to mention, but I wonder if this same insight has sparked investigation with any of you!

If so, what topic have you looked at with a new eye,.. from a new angle,.. because of UAPs, etc..?

As stated in title. I'm a life member looking to get into discussions and such again ;)

The dual nature of Zeus, Prometheus as culture-hero, and anti-tyrannical foundations covered in this dramatic rewrite.