* Programme *

SATURDAY 2nd JULY

10.00 am Registration and refreshments.
10.25 am Welcome by National President Co/in Price

10.30 am The Occult Life of Bulwer Lytton Kim Farnell

The novelist Bulwer Lytton exercised a considerable influence on Madame Blavatsky, and was widely believed to be involved in secret brotherhoods. How true was this? Kim Farnell is writing a new study of Lytton, having published ground breaking biographies of Walter Old and Mabel Collins.

MEAD SYMPOSIUM: 11.15 am. 1.15 pm. 2.00 pm

G. R. S. Mead (1863-1933) was private secretary to Madame Blavatsky, and later editor of Lucifer (which he renamed Theosophical Review). He left the Theosophical Society in 1909 in protest against the Leadbeater case, and founded the Quest Society. His many books on Gnosticism and allied subjects remain valuable today

II.15 am From Theosophy to Jungian Psychology: The Esoteric Progression of G. R. S. Mead Professor Nicholas Goodrick-C/arke

Mead sought a universal Theosophy and to this end began a thorough comparison of eastern and western esoteric ideas. His work made a potent contribution to Jungs concepts of archetypes and the collective unconscious.

Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke holds the newly established Chair of Western Esotericism at the University of Exeter.

12.00 pm Refreshments

1.15 pm G. R. S. Mead and the Gnostic Quest C/are Radene Goodrick-C/arke

Mead made subtle distinctions between Gnosticism and Hermeticism which have been amplified by modem scholarship. Clare’s new book G.R. S. Mead and the Gnostic Quest will be published in Autumn 2005 by North Atlantic Books in the Western Esoteric Masters series.

2.00 pm Confluent streams of Thought: Theory and Practice of Western Spirituality in the Work of G. R. S. Mead and A. E. Waite Robert Gilbert

Mead and Waite were friends and colleagues who exemplified the internal and external emphases in western esoteric spirituality - different but complementary. Robert Gilbert is completing his doctoral dissertation on the publication of esoteric literature in Victorian England.

2.45 pm Refreshments

3.15 pm Cognoscitur ab inimicis. What can the Claims of H. P. Blavatsky's Occult Enemies Tell us about Her Purposes? Patrick Deveney

Can we can understand Madame Blavatsky better by examining those like Albert Rawson, Thomas Lake Harris, George Wyld and Mabel Collins who opposed her? Patrick Deveney is the author of a biography of the sex magician P. B. Randolph, and of an important monograph on astral projection in the early T. S.

4.30 pm The Theosophical Seal: A Look into Origins and Variations Katinka Hesselink

Everyone will know of the seal that appears on Theosophical publications, but few realise that it has evolved, and differs from those used by earlier Theosophists and other occultists such as Eliphas Levi. Katinka Hesselink edits the international newsletter Lucifer 7. She is also President of the Groningen branch of the Theosophical Society in the Netherlands.

5.20 pm R. J. Lees, Queen Victoria and Jack the Ripper: Myth and Reality Stephen Butt

Robert James Lees was an influential healer and medium, but the attempt to document his life illustrates the dangers of legend. Stephen Butt is a BBC journalist who conducts a web site for Lees research

* Short Intermission *

6.30 pm The Great Victorian Flat Earth Controversy Dr Christine Garwood

Medieval scholars followed Aristotle in asserting that the earth was round. It was therefore surprising that the flat earth controversy was revived in Victorian times. Alfred Wallace was among scientists who argued the issue with astrologers and bible students. Dr Garwood was a research fellow for the Wallace project at the Open University, and is the author of a forthcoming book on the controversy.

7.30 pm Conference day ends

SUNDAY 3 JULY

10.00 am Registration and refreshments

10.30 am Mozart's Music: Synchronicity and the Mystery Schools Mike Hall

Can we trace the Mozart effect back to the ancient mystery schools of Egypt? Mike Hall of Edinburgh Lodge is the author of Play Mozart performed at the 1995 Edinburgh Festival.

11.15 am Theosophical Images in Silver Age Russian Poetry George Young

Scholars have generally neglected the influence of Theosophical ideas a pre-Revolutionary culture. George Young is an adjunct Professor in English at the University of New England. He will read and discuss selections.

I 12.00 pm Refreshments

1.30 pm The Enduring Relevance of H. P. Blavatsky Michael Gomes How has the image of Madame Blavatsky been changed by events such as the new Society for Psychical Research report of 1986, and the foundation of Theosophical History which celebrates twenty years of research in 2005? Michael Gomes is the author of a history of Theosophy in Britain, and of a new study of the 1884 Coulomb case

2.15 pm Kim Farnell introduces her new biography of Mabel Collins. 2.30 pm Refreshments

3.00 pm The Besant/Leadbeater Presentation of Theosophy Jean Overton Fuller

It is well known that second generation Theosophy differed from the first on certain points, but how did this happen and was it historically justified? Jean Overton Fuller is a biographer of St Germain, Madame Blavatsky and Krishnamurti.

4.15 pm Conclusion