The Secret Doctrine

Ukrainian-born Madame Helena Blavatsky (1831-1891) was a powerful member of the spiritualist world and for a time famous for her powers as a medium. She was a co-founder of the theosophy movement in the United States, which she later extended to Europe and India, drawing from her extensive global travels and her familiarity with a broad range of belief systems, from Asian religions to New Orleans voodoo, as well as secret societies such as the Freemasons. Drawing from Hinduism and Buddhism, theosophy aimed to understand the mystic powers of the universe and promote the study of other religions. Though many denounced her as a fraud, her writings provide an insight into the driving forces behind nineteenth-century spiritualist movements. In The Secret Doctrine, published in 1888, Blavatsky aims to explain the spiritual origins of the world.