Consider checking out the teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti. He was 'groomed' as a young man to be a high teacher in the Theosophy movement, but then rejected it (and all other religions/nationalities/movements). He died in Ojai, California in the 1980s

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jiddu_Krishnamurti

Krishnamurta was presented with the golden throne of the world by Theosophy, as the returning Messiah, and the irony is, he actually was enlightened -- enlightened enough to see that Theosophy was a bunch of bullshit, and its leaders were power-mad fanatics. He denied Satan on the mountain, as it were, and rejected them.

This is the full text of his 1929 talk at Saanen when he dissolved The Order of the Star, which he had been brought up (by Blavatsky and Ledbeater, both questionable people) as a young child to lead as the Maitreya. It's absolutely brilliant. He rejects it all and shows incredible wisdom for someone who was so highly controlled. And still so very young.

http://www.jiddu-krishnamurti.net/en/1927-1928-1929-early-writings/krishnamurti-early-writings-31-the-dissolution-of-the-order-of-the-star

I read the biographies by Annie Lutyens who grew up with him. Also fascinating, and she describes his many strange episodes, I don't even know what to call them, but they almost seem like either D.I.D. or channeling in the way she describes them. And his teacher persona was quite different from what she experienced with him in everyday life. Like he was another person, childlike when not on stage teaching, and then this other person came out.

Thanks for the link! Good stuff.

If you want to read about Theosophy's eventual influence in the 20th century, I recommend The Occult Roots of Nazism, Black Sun, and Hitler's Priestess. They're all by Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke, a historian from University of Exeter, which is great because you can talk about Theosophy's Occult racism's influence on Nazism and no one can cry foul at you: his books are scholarly publications from NYU Press and such (e.g., I even used them as secondary sources in undergrad and grad school). Unfortunately, he died recently, so the academic study of the Occult in the West lost a pioneer.

Regarding your question, Theosophy¹ is a religion (so you're correct regarding your sense that it's a "sect"), certainly one which most twenty-first-century Westerners would find uncomfortable given its focus on "root races" and Aryans.

1. Or, rather, at least HP Blavatsky's brand of Theosophy.

Theosophy was started by a Russian woman named Helena Blavatsky. She was a bit of a nut who rebelled against convention as a young woman, and traveled around the world on her father's money, seeking enlightenment. In Egypt, she began to attempt to set up a spiritualist cult (spiritualism was becoming popular around that time), but failed. She didn't have real success until she came to New York.

Originally Theosophy was an occult organization of men and women devoted to personal improvement. As is so often the case, they believed they had special knowledge not available to the rest of humanity, through their spirit medium Blavetsky, who supposedly channeled the teachings of various enlightened spirits. Eventually, it was proven that Blavatsky faked much if not all of her seances, and some of her supporters left her. Others stayed and made excuses for her deceits.

When she died, her cult shifted from the occult to religion. It is heavily influenced by eastern esoteric teachings -- from India and Tibet. It believes in reincarnation, karma, astral planes, different kinds of spiritual beings, and so on.

Today, Theosophy is mostly harmless. Some of its speculations are interesting to those inclined to esoteric speculations. They are not as rabid about controlling their members as Scientology, for example. You probably don't need to worry about getting pulled in and not being able to get out.

Isnt this what Blavatsky was into? Isnt this what Hitler based his vision of the SS as a religious order on?

Oh yeah, and now days that have that Lord Maitreya bullshit going on, which is some really creepy psyop connected to some of the usual suspects.

Shits weird man.

study the main leaders of the movement , HP Blavatzky ; Manly P Hall -- much info & insight

“Whatever plane our consciousness may be acting in, both we and the things belonging to that plane are, for the time being, our only realities. As we rise in the scale of development we perceive that during the stages through which we have passed we mistook shadows for realities, and the upward progress of the Ego is a series of progressive awakenings, each advance bringing with it the idea that now, at last, we have reached "reality"; but only when we shall have reached the absolute Consciousness, and blended our own with it, shall we be free from the delusions produced by Maya [illusion]. ”

― Helena Petrovna Blavatsky

Manly P Hall was incredibly prolific. His lectures involve subjects like cosmology, astro-theology and the secret powers you gain when you become a freemason (his words not mine).

Theosophy is a became the cult of the mahatmas. When Rudolf Steiner and others disagreed with her on Kristnamurti all the people with half a brain left.

As a practicing occultist let me tell you this: follow your instincts and remain skeptical to every claim.

Blavatsky had some interesting things to say about the occult and the esoteric history (real and imagined) of civilization. What value there may have been in Theosophy was destroyed by Leadbetter and Bessant. Leadbetter was a notorious pederast and Bessant had her own serious moral flaws which included distorting Blavatsky's school of thought for personal financial gain.

Again, trust your instincts.

Rudolf Steiner broke away from the international Theosophy group after Annie Besant proclaimed Krishnamurti the "new Christ". Steiner then formed Anthroposophy out of the German chapter of Theosophy.

Krishnamurti shortly after disbanded the international Theosophical organization because he realized quite quickly the direction Theosophy was headed was absolutely dogmatic and wrong...he could not take part in it and as the "leader" he felt it his duty to disband them. Steiner claimed that Blavatsky was a very talented clairvoyant but she made some majour mistakes in her occult research. Isis Unveiled has a lot of solid "occult" info but slightly skewed. Theosophy sought to EQUALIZE the religions and Anthroposphy sought to put them in a historical evolutionary context with the "Mystery of Golgotha" as a center point of man's current evolutionary phase.

My recommendation is to read some Rudolf Steiner. Practically all of his work is online (http://www.rsarchive.org/). I have thoroughly investigated all new age religions and all of the world religions and I have found Steiner to be the closest to the honest truth that I can find. I also find Krishnamurti very refreshing in the spiritual thinking world as he despised new age rhetoric and bullshit and was well known for challenging his audience to think for themselves and then act...rather than doing more "ruminating" about spirituality. Steiner encouraged the same.

I didn't know what I instinctively have believed since memories began had a name, thank you.

About reincarnation, is it really that fantastical? If energy is neither created nor destroyed, merely converted, why wouldn't this universal law apply to humans? We are literally made of star dust.

Energy isn't created or destroyed, but all evidence is consciousness is a product of the brain and when the brain stops functioning the energy dissipates.

You see how you just contradicted yourself there?

Dissipates doesn't mean destroyed.

Dissipates into what? Where? Does a new brain acquire that energy?

It scatters like a fart in the wind.

If consciousness resides in the brain, are mentally handicapped, paralyzed or brain damaged people not conscious? (I'm not referring to the comatose, I mean those whose brains aren't functioning as average. Nor am I talking about the medical or legal terms. I'm talking spiritually.)

That's up to your belief system - I don't have a spiritual outlook.

Saltwater

Everyone who terrifies you is sixty-five percent water.

And everyone you love is made of stardust,

and I know sometimes you cannot even breathe deeply,

and the night sky is no home,

and you have cried yourself to sleep enough times

that you are down to your last two percent, but

nothing is infinite,

not even loss.

You are made of the sea and the stars, and one day

you are going to find yourself again.

-Finn Butler

So it becomes inactive until a later date?

I want to believe too, Mulder.

Why did it give you a bad feeling ? It seems like new age religion which is typically kinda out there.

Theosophy is not a religion ; Theosophy is considered a part of the broader field of esotericism, referring to hidden knowledge or wisdom that offers the individual enlightenment and salvation. They also hold there is no religion higher than truth .

New Age religion isn't "out there", it's about what's within. Astral projection isn't about travel, it's about occupying soul space. I don't know why SO many here reject its philosophy, when it's widely apparent it's a motivation for TPTB. I think we should stop calling Satanism or the occult "evil" and start calling it what it really is: powerful .

powerful how?

The ability to conceal, manipulate, control.

Got an everyday kind of example?

Using sleep deprivation as a means of control. Communication through nontraditional means (telepathy, yes I totally believe it is possible, if practiced). All sorts of energy work.

I believe/agree with the rest, but what do you mean about the sleep deprivation as a means of control bit? Never heard of that one... unless you're just mocking.

Not sleep deprivation through physical light or sound upon the victim, but through auditory and visual "hallucination". Think Navy Yard shooter, he claimed people were following him with ELF devices. Given what we know about the NSA's ability to hack WiFi 8+ miles away, HAARP looks like one scary mutherfucker...

It's just religion. Nothing more, nothing less.

The official stance claims that all space, time, and matter were confined to a single point, and then suddenly decided to defy the physical laws that brought them together, expanded outward, forming stars and galaxies. The left over dust formed into planets, which magically chained together specific groups of atoms into proteins and DNA, which eventually evolved into dinosaurs and humans.

I think consciousness is the driving force of the simulated universe. Theosophy probably has more to speak to our origins than science. I'm just rambling, but I couldn't not post on this thread.

Some interesting anecdotes, regarding their belief in Ascended Masters: The Great White Brotherhood

The Great White Brotherhood, in belief systems akin to Theosophical and New Age, are said to be supernatural beings of great power who spread spiritual teachings through selected humans.[57] The members of the Brotherhood may be known as the Masters of the Ancient Wisdom or the Ascended masters.[57] Various people have said they have received messages from these beings, including most notably Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (Theosophy), Aleister Crowley (Thelema), Alice A. Bailey (New Group of World Servers), Guy Ballard ("I AM" Activity), Geraldine Innocente (The Bridge to Freedom), Elizabeth Clare Prophet (Church Universal and Triumphant) and Benjamin Creme (Share International).[57]

The Masters are collectively called the "Great White Brotherhood" by various theosophists and esotericists. The use of the term "white" refers to their advanced spirituality (in other words, that they have a white colored aura) and has nothing to do with race. Blavatsky described many of the Masters as ethnically Tibetan or Indian (Hindu), not European.[58] She did, however, describe them as being from all cultures and races, such as the "Greek gentleman" known as Hilarion.[59]

Belief in the Brotherhood and the Masters is an essential part of the syncretistic teachings of various organizations that have taken the Theosophical philosophical concepts and added their own elements.[60] Examples of those believed to be Ascended Masters by these organizations are: Jesus, Sanat Kumara, Gautama Buddha, Maitreya, Confucius, Lord Lanto (Confucius' historical mentor), Mary (mother of Jesus), Lady Master Nada, Enoch, Kwan Yin, Saint Germain, and Kuthumi, to name but a few.[20] It is believed that all of these put aside any differences they might have had in their Earthly careers, and unite instead to advance the spiritual well-being of humanity.[61]

Don't trust anything that's not a real word.

Theology + Philosophy = Theosophy. See, philosophy already deals with theology and vica verca

same goes for scientology

Frappuchinos, 30+ carbs per >10 oz bottle!

Don't even get me started on pretzel chips, bagel chips, or cracker-thin-crisps-lite

Generally, why believe anything of supernatural origins? You have everything that lies within the natural world, or everything we can possibly know. Then there's everything that wouldn't be natural, or supernatural; by definition, you cannot possibly know anything about it.

I want to believe too, Mulder.