Madame Blavatsky's Baboon: A History of the Mystics, Mediums, and Misfits Who Brought Spiritualism to Ameri CA

by Peter Washington

Book Overview

Just before the turn of the century, a renegade Russian aristocrat named Madame Blavatsky came to America claiming that man was descended not from the ape but from spiritual beings. Thus began... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0805210245
• ISBN13: 9780805210248
• Release Date: January 1996
• Publisher: Schocken Books Inc
• Length: 496 Pages
• Weight: 1.06 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Good read

I found this book to be quite a good read. Yes, Mr. Washington is clearly skeptical about the Theosophical Movement but he is hardly the first. I think reading ISIS UNVEILED or THE SECRET DOCTRINE would not cause most people to conclude that Washington is wrong to be skeptical. Many of the negative reviews attack his facts but few cite concrete examples. Scroeder (T) does. He claims that Washington places Madame Blavatsky's death in 1909 not its correct 8 May 1891. In my copy of the book, on page 100, Washington writes that Madame Blavatsky died on 8 May 1891. As one who grew up in Fort Wayne myself, Scroeder (T), please help me and supply a citation for the 1909 reference.

Excellent book about New Age Gurus

A great intro into the source of New Age origins and why it thrives. A wise man(or woman) learns from the mistakes of others and this book is a good chronicle of past weirdness. The book drags a bit in spots but overall it is an enjoyable read and very informative.

Theosophy and Its Offspring.

_Madame Blavatsky's Babboon_ by Peter Washington is a history of the various movements which arose out of spiritualism and the Theosophical Society of Madame Blavatsky in the Nineteenth Century. The book covers a great deal, but mostly it focuses on various schisms and scandals within spiritualism, theosophical, and proto-New Age movements. The book also shows the human side of the many spiritualists, magicians, cranks, and mediums - the western gurus who followed from theosophy. The book begins by discussing various forms of spiritualism in the early Nineteenth century. Spiritualism developed as people grew disenfranchised with both materialism and scientism, brought on by modern progress in science, evolutionism (Darwinism), and developments in modern physics, as well as classical religion. Among the various spiritualist groups discussed include the Fox sisters, who allegedly made contact with the spirit world, various groups which grew out of Anglicanism and liberal movements within the church, Mormonism, and Christian Science. All these new religious movements promised contrast to both modern materialism and something different from classical religion. In addition, new doctrines from the East began to become popular. It was in this environment, that Henry Olcott made contact with Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, and out of this contact and friendship developed the Theosophical Society. Blavatsky, the daughter of a Russian aristocrat, made various outrageous claims regarding her early life and her travels. She claimed to have visited Tibet where she made contact with certain Hidden Masters. She was also to write two important works, _Isis Unveiled_ which argued against the materialism and scientism of her day and _The Secret Doctrine_ which outlined her system, revealed her racial doctrines, and expressed her belief in Hidden Masters. The headquarters of the Theosophical Society were subsequently moved from New York to India, where various conflicts between the temperamental and morbidly obese Blavatsky and other members arose. One of the earlier converts to Theosophy was Charles Webster Leadbeater, a pedophiliac prelate who helped found the Liberal Catholic Church (a splinter sect off the Old Catholic Church which maintained allegiance to Theosophy). Leadbeater helped found a school for boys along with Annie Besant. Annie Besant, had begun as a radical - socialist and feminist - who developed an interest in Theosophy. She was subsequently to take over the position of Blavatsky within the society. Together Leadbeater and Besant took an interest in a young Indian child whose father had become a convert to Theosophy. This was Krishnamurti whose teachings eventually made their way to the West where he was schooled. Krishnamurti, himself, was involved in various scandals, including love affairs with older and married women. Rudolph Steiner was another individual who took an early interest in Theosophy. He came from a background wh

Little Known Facts

Not only was the Thoesophical Society all this and more, but the group has ties to the Nazi party, or rather, antisemitism in Germany pre-holocaust. Few realize it was the Theosophical publishing houses which printed many of the antisemitic tracts which so influenced the people, and Hitler, who was converted to antisemitism through a tract. For some details on this The Printing Press as an Agent of Change, by Elisabeth Eisenstein.This book is excellent, invaluable. When people realize all of the pies the Theosophical Society has it's fingers in, though, there will be more weeping than laughing.

A series of cautionary tales...........

A few years ago I went to a spiritually oriented week-long conference where there were a lot of New Age ideas being discussed and taught. I was open to some of these ideas, but what struck me as odd were the teachers themselves. Very few seemed to have learned the art of critical thinking, but no matter--their lack of intellectual depth was clearly compensated for by the strength of their belief in their special calling and powers. I wondered about the evolution of these so-called "spiritual teachers" and their teachings, and I believe I have found in this book a good portion of what I wondered about. Peter Washington delves into the beliefs of the Theosophists, many of which ideas are quite similar to some of the current New Age ideas (such as the teaching of the Ascended Masters). He presents evidence that most of these ideas were made up by Madame Blavatsky herself. After being propounded by Madame, they were eagerly gobbled up by a large number of credulous followers. These followers were so taken with their new spiritual leaders that they refused to believe any evidence that they were being duped by tactics such as staged seances or missives from the Masters materialized out of thin air. They even held their tongues when it came out that those leaders were practicing child abuse. This book is not just a study in the power grabbing that often goes on among professional spiritual teachers, it also digs into the willingness of seekers to turn over their power to these teachers. In that sense it is a rather painful, sad study of human nature, yet written in a way that is sarcastic, and at times wickedly witty. I recommend this book to any reader who considers him/herself to be on a spiritual path, as there are many valuable lessons in it.