Introduction
The Theosophical Society was founded in late 1875 in New York City by a Russian noblewoman, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, and an American, Colonel Henry Olcott, together with lawyer William Quan Judge and other individuals interested in Madame Blavatsky's ideology.
Madame Blavatsky
Madame Blavatsky was the first Russian woman to get US citizenship. As a young lady, she travelled the world in search of information about the nature of life and the purpose of human existence.
Blavatsky ultimately brought Eastern spiritual wisdom and ancient Western mysteries to the modern period, where they were almost unknown. Her writings paved the way for what is now known as 'Contemporary Theosophy'.
Colonel Olcott
Colonel Olcott, a noted lawyer and journalist, was chosen as the society's first President. He was also a globally renowned agriculture specialist.
Olcott brought Theosophy's ageless wisdom into contact with Eastern and Western cultures, applied it to daily life, and expanded the organisation into an international enterprise.
The Theosophical Society
In 1879, Madame Blavatsky and Col. Olcott, two of the Society's major founders, travelled to India, where the Society immediately grew. Helena Blavatsky "at the very beginning followed Swami Dayanand Saraswati.
Blavatsky soon after left Dayananda and established the Theosophical Society like her own "samaj."
In 1882, they established the Society's worldwide headquarters in Adyar, a district of Madras, where it has remained ever since. They also travelled to Sri Lanka, where Olcott was so engaged in lobbying for suppressed Buddhists' social welfare that he was recognised as a national hero there as well.
Madame Blavatsky died in 1891, leaving the movement's chief leaders, Colonel Olcott and English social reformer Annie Besant (1847–1933).
Annie Besant
Annie Besant, the Theosophical Society's most distinguished leader, replaced Blavatsky as the first and only female President of the Indian National Congress in 1917.
After his two co-founders left for India in late 1878, William Quan Judge continued to encourage interest in Theosophy in the United States.
Major Aim of The Society
Theosophy's fundamental purpose was to develop a nucleus for the real development of global brotherhood techniques, independent of ideology, religion, religious belief, or point of view.
The first is a concentration on mystical occurrences. Theosophical thinkers claimed the existence of a higher spiritual reality and the potential for direct contact with it by intuition, meditation, revelation, or some other level of mind beyond ordinary human experience.
Additionally, theosophists value elusive theories highly. Also, theosophists believe that understanding true knowledge offers insight into nature's secrets and the basic essence of humanity.
Numerous Theosophical lodges created in Europe and the United States contributed to the Western world's becoming familiar with Hinduism's teachings.