Theos-Talk Archives (February 2002 Message tt00101)

Adelasie: "Give it time. It will catch on."

Given the fact that the last 80 years membership dropped by around 
70% or more, and given the fact that most Theosophists are not 
willing to even have an honest look at Blavatsky's sources or the 
true history of the TS, this is verry unlikelly.
And total oblivion, if not a major turnaround happens, is a more 
logical outcome given the current pattern of ant-rattionalism 
including for example on this list.

"The eyes of an accurate thinker sees facts, truth and reality, not 
mayas, glamors and illusions."
Blavatsky asked by Moncure Daniel Conway one of the most respected 
men in the US that time wrote upon visiting Blavatsky in Adyar India;

"She asked what was my particular proposal or desire. I said, "I wish 
to find out something about the strange performances attributed to 
you. I hear of your drawing teapots from under your chair, taking 
brooches out of flowers, and of other miracles. If such things really 
occur I desire to know it, and to give a testimony to my people in 
London in favour of Theosophy. What does it all mean?"

She said with a serene smile, "I will tell you, because you are a 
public teacher [here she added some flattery], and you ought to know 
the truth; it is all glamour - people think they see what they do not 
see - that is the whole of it."

It was impossible not to admire the art of this confession. Mme. 
Blavatsky, forewarned by Professor John Smith of my intended 
investigation, had arranged precisely the one maneuver that could 
thwart it. Had I continued it, cross-examining her adherents, 
proposing plans for verification, I might have awakened doubts and 
suspicions among her "neophytes." But she spiked my guns; her 
confession was made without witnesses, and should I use it publicly 
it was easy enough to say I had misunderstood her. And moreover she 
had used the vague word "glamour," which might preserve her personal 
throne while giving up the reality of the things attested by her 
miracles."

ttp://www.blavatskyarchives.com/conway3.htm
 
Brigitte

In 1928 World population was at 2 milliard people, the TS at 45.000.

In 1980 world population was at 4.5 milliard people, TS at 34.391 
according to Gregory Tillet?s figures. 

That is a loss in compairance of 66% of TS membership during this 
period of time.

If membership since 1980 went up according to the rise in world 
population since then wich has again been considerable, the the ?66% 
would remain stable, if membership did not sufficiently go up, the 
the 66% would have become more since 1980.

I also attempted to figure out how much of the total world population 
Theosophists made up, but I came up with only a fraction of (much 
less then) 1% of the world population that after 150 years are 
Theosophists.Wich is rather remarkable if one considers that theirs 
is the religion of all religions, why after 150 years and a library 
full of books that have been written on it with at least one or the 
other translated in about all languages of the world, did hardly 
any body catched on to the claimed facts ?

I also aquired some figures from the UK but these are even more 
deppressive if taken for itself so I left them out because according 
to these it would be much worser then –66%, namely in just 7
years time from 1928, 5,170 members in 1935 there where only 3,520, 
and has since dropped much more dramatic, checking it with world 
population in 1928 versus 1980.