Overview

The Theosophical Society (est. 1875 in New York by H. P. Blavatsky, H. S. Olcott and others) is increasingly becoming recognized for its influential role in shaping the alternative new religious and cultural landscape of the late nineteenth and the twentieth century, especially as an early promoter of interest in Indian and Tibetan religions and philosophies. Despite this increasing awareness, many of the central questions relating to the early Theosophical Society and the East remain largely unexplored. This book is the first scholarly anthology dedicated to this topic. It offers many new details about the study of Theosophy in the history of modern religions and Western esotericism.The essays in Imagining the East explore how Theosophists during the formative period understood the East and those of its people with whom they came into contact. The authors examine the relationship of the theosophical approach with orientalism and aspects of the history of ideas, politics, and culture at large and discuss how these esoteric or theosophical representations mirrored conditions and values current in nineteenth-century mainstream intellectual culture. The essays also look at how the early Theosophical Society's imagining of the East differed from mainstream 'orientalism' and how the Theosophical Society's mission in India was distinct from that of British colonialism and Christian missionaries.

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Reviews

The early years of the Theosophical Society were a crucial time with regard to the interaction between Euro-American occultism and colonial India. In this volume, leading experts open up new vistas on the formation of occult South Asia. It thus will serve as a veritable treasure trove of insights for anyone interested in South Asian society and religion, orientalism, and the history of occultism. * Karl Baier, Head of the Department of Religious Studies, University of Vienna * InImagining the East, leading scholars tell the story of the early Theosophical Society's relation to Buddhism and Hinduism more fully than it has ever been told before-a story that includes eccentric and strange episodes, but nevertheless had a global impact in history: being nothing less thanan important bridge upon which Eastern ideas and practices travelled to the West. * Jens Schlieter, author of What Is it Like to Be Dead? Near-Death Experiences, Christianity, and the Occult * The early Theosophical Society was uniquely positioned between Orientalist and Occidentalist imaginations, and it had a significant influence on how people in the 'West' looked at 'Eastern' traditions of wisdom (and vice versa). Imagining the East provides a nuanced analysis of the complex processes of colonial entanglements that shaped influential movements in India, Europe, and North America. Highly recommended to everyone interested in the cultural impact of an allegedly 'esoteric' or 'Western' phenomenon! * Kocku von Stuckrad, author of The Scientification of Religion: An Historical Study of Discursive Change, 1800-2000 *

Imagining the East is a landmark collection. It could easily become one of the most important scholarly texts in the study of the Theosophical movement. -- W. Michael Ashcraft, Truman State University Reading through this superb collection was a pleasure ride -- inspirational and much recommended. -- Lukas Pokorny, Religious Studies Review The early Theosophical Society was uniquely positioned between Orientalist and Occidentalist imaginations, and it had a significant influence on how people in the 'West' looked at 'Eastern' traditions of wisdom (and vice versa). Imagining the East provides a nuanced analysis of the complex processes of colonial entanglements that shaped influential movements in India, Europe, and North America. Highly recommended to everyone interested in the cultural impact of an allegedly 'esoteric' or 'Western' phenomenon! -- Kocku von Stuckrad, author of The Scientification of Religion: An Historical Study of Discursive Change, 1800-2000 In Imagining the East, leading scholars tell the story of the early Theosophical Society's relation to Buddhism and Hinduism more fully than it has ever been told before--a story that includes eccentric and strange episodes, but nevertheless had a global impact in history: being nothing less than an important bridge upon which Eastern ideas and practices travelled to the West. -- Jens Schlieter, author of What Is it Like to Be Dead? Near-Death Experiences, Christianity, and the Occult The early years of the Theosophical Society were a crucial time with regard to the interaction between Euro-American occultism and colonial India. In this volume, leading experts open up new vistas on the formation of occult South Asia. It thus will serve as a veritable treasure trove of insights for anyone interested in South Asian society and religion, orientalism, and the history of occultism. -- Karl Baier, Head of the Department of Religious Studies, University of Vienna

Reading through this superb collection was a pleasure ride -- inspirational and much recommended. -- Lukas Pokorny, Religious Studies Review The early Theosophical Society was uniquely positioned between Orientalist and Occidentalist imaginations, and it had a significant influence on how people in the 'West' looked at 'Eastern' traditions of wisdom (and vice versa). Imagining the East provides a nuanced analysis of the complex processes of colonial entanglements that shaped influential movements in India, Europe, and North America. Highly recommended to everyone interested in the cultural impact of an allegedly 'esoteric' or 'Western' phenomenon! -- Kocku von Stuckrad, author of The Scientification of Religion: An Historical Study of Discursive Change, 1800-2000 In Imagining the East, leading scholars tell the story of the early Theosophical Society's relation to Buddhism and Hinduism more fully than it has ever been told before--a story that includes eccentric and strange episodes, but nevertheless had a global impact in history: being nothing less than an important bridge upon which Eastern ideas and practices travelled to the West. -- Jens Schlieter, author of What Is it Like to Be Dead? Near-Death Experiences, Christianity, and the Occult The early years of the Theosophical Society were a crucial time with regard to the interaction between Euro-American occultism and colonial India. In this volume, leading experts open up new vistas on the formation of occult South Asia. It thus will serve as a veritable treasure trove of insights for anyone interested in South Asian society and religion, orientalism, and the history of occultism. -- Karl Baier, Head of the Department of Religious Studies, University of Vienna

Author Information

Dr. Tim Rudbøg is Associate Professor and director of The Copenhagen Center for the Study of Theosophy and Esotericism at the University of Copenhagen. As a historian of religions, Rudbøg's previous publications have particularly focused on Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, Theosophy, hermeticism, intellectual history, and the academic study of Western esotericism. Erik Reenberg Sand is Associate Professor, emeritus, at the University of Copenhagen. His English publications include articles on Hindu ancestor rituals in the Puranas, the history and rituals of the Maharashtrian place of pilgrimage, Pandharpur, religion and the Indian constitution, and the history of the discipline of the phenomenology of religions.

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