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THE ROSICRUCIAN VISION
Welcome to the 28th e-newsletter of The Foundation for Theosophical Studies, which lists our events for the next week at the London headquarters of the Theosophical Society in England.
This week's Sunday lecture features the distinguished expert on Rosicrucianism, Christopher McIntosh, author of many books on this fascinating topic - he is in England for only a short time, so do be sure to catch his lecture. In the afternoon, Eric McGough will give a theosophical workshop on the divine, Gods in the Making. Also this week, the Dhyana Centre begins a new beginners' course on Tuesday.
Thank you for all your comments so far about the newsletter. Please keep sending them and let us know if there are any topics you would like us to feature in the future.
We also welcome contributors willing to submit the featured article. These are designed to be properly researched informative, educational or historically-based articles which relate to theosophy and the ageless wisdom.
Do please forward this newsletter to your friends and fellow TS members and encourage them to sign up!
And if you can't get to 50 Gloucester Place, you can always buy CDs or tapes of most of our events. Email info@theosoc.org.uk for a list. |
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Very best wishes,
Colyn Boyce
Publicity and Administrator
The Foundation is an educational charity which uses theosophical principles to promote knowledge and the study of religion, philosophy and science; which also researches the laws of nature and the powers latent in man; and which promulgates the unity of all people |
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This Week at 50 Gloucester Place |
SUNDAY 4 NOVEMBER 2007
2-4.30 pm: GODS IN THE MAKING 
Eric McGough
Why does Theosophy place us in the vanguard of evolution, with the ultimate challenge of reaching perfection and taking our place in the company of Gods? How can this be taken seriously when we look around us at the violent uncaring way that we live? The Masters gave us Theosophy to light our journey to perfection and wholeness. We will explore this wisdom, to uncover the answers to the 'problems of the world' and we will discover that we truly are 'Gods in the making'.
Eric McGough is President of Chester theosophical branch and is Director of Training and Courses for the English Section of the Society.
Arranged by the Theosophical Society in England.
£10, £7 concessions , £5 TS members
4.45-5.45 pm: THEOSOPHY: Way to Self- Discovery - Introductory Course on the Ageless Wisdom
 Colin Price
An informal on-going class in which the basic teachings of Theosophy (Greek for Divine Wisdom) are explored and discussed. In this class we will consider the sevenfold nature of humanity and the cosmos and how karma and reincarnation are involved. The book Deity, Cosmos and Man will be used as the main source text for the meetings.
Colin Price is National President of The Theosophical Society in England.
Admission free
6 pm: THE ROSICRUCIAN VISION (illustrated)
Christopher McIntosh
Tonight's talk describes how Rosicrucianism arose four centuries ago offering a holistic and unifying vision at a time when Europe was bitterly divided by sectarian conflicts. It explores the diverse movements that have grown out of the original Rosicrucian vision and the repercussions in such fields as religion, politics, science, literature and the arts. Finally, we assess the significance of the Rosicrucian current in the context of the modern world.
Christopher McIntosh, DPhil (Oxon), is a lecturer in Rosicrucianism at the University of Bremen, Germany. He is author of The Rosicrucians(reprinted 1997) and other books.
£7, £5 concessions + TS members
MONDAY 5 NOVEMBER 2007
7-8.30 pm:SELF REALISATION CENTRE
 Christian Bodhi
Every Monday until 10 December 2007
The centre is dedicated to the practice of self-realisation, based on Blavatsky, Alice Bailey and Maitreya's teachings. It will provide education in Ageless Wisdom and its day to day application. The meetings are in a form of workshops: offering meditation, signing of mantras and spiritual songs of all religions, text study, free discussion and artistic enterprise (e.g. music, drawing and film making). A due attention will be given to personal growth and emancipation. Your active participation and passion for the community is expected, and your creative contribution is more than welcome. We hope to create a supportive and friendly group where members can feel at home and have an opportunity for individual and group growth.
Christian Bodhi is a long-term student and lecturer of Ageless Wisdom, experienced in Raja, Jnana, Laya and Bhakti Yoga. He is educated in philosophy and science, and he is a student of Bioenergetics school of psychology. Christian is committed to spiritual path through individual, collective and global illumination and transformation.
Admission £3
TUESDAY 6 NOVEMBER 2007
7-8.30 pm: THE SECRET DOCTRINE
Victor Hangya
 In the midst of today's materialism and ruins of old religions you are invited to join the excavation of the perennial wisdom! The tool used in our exploration is The Secret Doctrine, which claims 'logical coherence and consistency' and expects to be treated as a 'working hypothesis', so freely accepted by modern science. The SD sheds light on some of the greatest mysteries concerning Man, God and the Universe. Victor Hangya has been exploring the Ageless Wisdom for more than 20 years. Admission free
7 - 9 pm: Dhyana Centre of The Theosophical Society: THE JOY OF MEDITATION
Course 5/07: 6, 13 & 20 November 2007
 Leader: Alan Perry
For beginners, the Dhyana Centre holds regular introductory courses on weekdays and weekend intensives that cover the same ground in a truncated form. The weekday courses are held over three 2 hour sessions on Wednesdays and teach the theory and practice of meditation as a spiritual discipline (Raja or Dhyana Yoga) including breathing, chakras, devotional visualisation and the use of mantra. No experience, preparation or registration is required. Just turn up at the start of any course or workshop.
WEDNESDAY 7 NOVEMBER 2007
7 - 9 pm:
GNOSIS, MAGIC & MYSTICISM II
(10, 24 October; 7, 21 November)
George Sieg
This course introduces methods and techniques of applied occultism. Drawing on many Northern and Southern traditions, it covers the cultural and modern relevance of Western esotericism, as well as historical and contemporary occult practices, including magical theory; concentration and meditation; spiritual and elemental magic; and the use of magical runes, sigils, arcana, and 'alphabets of desire.'
George Sieg is researching his MPhil/PhD at the University of Exeter's Centre for the Study of Esotericism.
Admission: £8 (£6 concessions)
THURSDAY 8 NOVEMBER 2007
6.45 pm BLAVATSKY LODGE:
The Timeless Spiritual Teachings of Patanjali
Clemens Brenan
Open meeting of the Blavatsky Lodge
£5 (£2 members of Blavatsky Lodge, £3 other TS members)
Read on... |
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THE ROSICRUCIAN VISION |
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The Rosicrucian Order is a legendary esoteric order with its roots in the Western mystery tradition. This hermetic order is viewed among earlier and many modern Rosicrucianists as a College of Invisibles from the inner worlds, composed of great Adepts, aiming to give assistance in humanity's spiritual development.
The Brethren of the Rose Cross is perceived by students of metaphysics as an important part or even the source of the hermetic-Christian tradition of the western alchemy treatises period subsequent to the publication of Dante's The Divine Comedy (1308-1321).
However, researchers of history and society in general through the last centuries, dealing with objective material proofs, assume its origin in a group of German Protestants, between 1607 and 1616, when three anonymous documents were elaborated and published in Europe: Fama Fraternitatis Rosae Crucis, Confessio Fraternitatis, and Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutzanno 1459. The influence of these documents, presenting the "most laudable Order" and promoting a "Universal Reformation of Mankind", was so huge that the historian Frances Yates refers to this period of the 17th century as the Rosicrucian Enlightenment.
In his laboratory, the alchemist works on the materia prima and uses, among other tools, a furnace called an athanor. In Spiritual Alchemy, the materia prima is the human soul, and the athanor is the physical body and the subtle bodies. The latter maintain the life of the most dense one and assure the connection with the soul. The laboratory is human existence during which the soul can learn to perfect itself, achieving the transmutation of vices and defects (the vile metal) into virtues and qualities.
The first Rosicrucians practiced alchemy in the laboratory, which was in vogue at that epoch, of interest even to popes and kings. The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutzis a major written work which clearly makes reference to this work. Current-day Rosicrucianists (like modern Freemasons, who do not literally construct cathedrals anymore) direct their concentration toward the work of spiritual alchemy.
According to the early Manifestoes, the Rosicrucians were a "secret" Order. Their members believed or could demonstrate healing powers that were seen as a gift from God: Spiritual Healing. In the outer orders these powers were explained by Egyptian mysteries and again, differently in the Hermetic Order. Members were admitted on this basis alone and the membership was very selective. The writers, philosophers and people of the time became curious. others were infuriated because they were excluded, so that many of the writings of the time are biased or speculative for this reason. Many modern Rosicrucian organizations hold the belief that these divine powers may be used to help others. |
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