The Singapore Lodge Theosophical Society
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The Singapore Lodge Theosophical Society
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The following articles are reproduced from the May 2025 Newsletter to members. Non-members may or may not be able to relate to the contents. Lord Buddha “I will first say that there can be no Planetary Spirit that was not once material or what you call human. When our great Buddha — the patron of all the adepts, the reformer and the codifier of the occult system, reached first Nirvana on earth, he became a Planetary Spirit; i.e. — his spirit could at one and the same time rove the interstellar spaces in full consciousness, and continue at will on Earth in his original and individual body. For the divine Self had so completely disfranchised itself from matter that it could create at will an inner substitute for itself, and leaving it in the human form for days, weeks, sometimes years, affect in no wise by the change either the vital principle or the physical mind of its body. By the way, that is the highest form of adeptship man can hope for on our planet.” A Master of the Wisdom
The Great Wesak Blessing
Bishop Charles W. Leaderbeater a renowned theosophist and occultist writes:
"The Lord Gautama Buddha, instead of devoting Himself wholly to other and higher work after His Mahaparanirvana, has remained sufficiently in touch with our world to be reached by the invocation of His successor when necessary, so that His advice and help can still be obtained in any great emergency. He also undertook to return to the world once in each year and shed upon it a flood of blessing.
The Lord Buddha has His own special type of force, which He outpours when He gives His blessing to the world, and this benediction is a unique and very marvellous thing; for by His authority and position, a Buddha has access to planes of nature which are altogether beyond our reach, hence He can transmute and draw down to our level the forces peculiar to those planes. Without this mediation of the Buddha these forces would be of no use to us here in physical life; their vibrations are so tremendous, so incredibly rapid, that they would pass through us unsensed at any level we can reach, and we should never even know of their existence. But as it is, the force of the blessing is scattered all over the world; and it instantly finds for itself channels through which it can pour (just as water instantly finds an open pipe), thereby strengthening all good work and bringing peace to the hearts of those who are able to receive it.
The occasion selected for this wonderful outpouring is the full moon day of the Indian month of Vaisakh (Wesak), and usually corresponding to the month of May, the anniversary of all the momentous occurrences of His last earthly life—His birth, His attainment of Buddhahood and His departure from the physical body.
In connection with this visit of His, and quite apart from its tremendous esoteric significance, an exoteric ceremony is performed in the physical plane at which the Lord actually shows Himself in the presence of a crowd of ordinary pilgrims. All Members of the Great Occult Hierarchy, except the Lord of the World and the three Kumaras, usually attend this ceremony.
The place selected for this stupendous occasion is a small plateau surrounded by low hills, which lies on the northern side of the Himalayas, not far from the frontier of Nepal, about 400 miles west of Lhasa. This location is commonly referred to as the Wesak Valley and the occasion is referred to as the Wesak Festival."
Bishop C. W. Leadbeater gave a first-hand account from his personal participation and the Wesak Festival is described in great detail in his book The Masters And The Path which was first published in 1925. There are several entries in Geoffrey Hodson’s occult diary, Light of the Sanctuary, chronicling his attendance at the Wesak Festival. In his entry of May 30, 1949 he writes “This is a most vivid conscious experience and completely satisfies me concerning C.W. Leadbeater’s account”.
Normally this day coincides with the 15th (full-moon) day of the Fourth Month on the Chinese Lunar calendar, which is always a public holiday in Singapore. This year, Buddha Purnima falls on Monday, 12 May 2025, coinciding with the Wesak Day public holiday. We shall therefore hold our traditional annual Wesak Day celebration on the public day, i.e. on Monday, 12 May 2025, at 11 a.m.
Geoffrey Hodson’s Chronicle of Wesak
In his occult diary, Light of the Sanctuary, under the 30 May 1949 entry, Geoffrey Hodson writes:
"Then, for the first time, I experienced, out of the body and in full consciousness on waking, the Vaishakh Ceremony of this year. I walked in the procession, saw the leading Adept of great beauty and grace, with reddish brown hair; the curved and sometimes straight lines followed by the Initiates in single file, the uplifted Rod. I heard the resounding invocation and the shouts of amazement of the pilgrims behind, saw the gold-clad, seated Figure and one rose on its stem, alive, fresh, falling close to me. All Initiates were materialized and had a curious faraway concentrated expression, with the centre of awareness on the Causal and higher planes. This is a most vivid conscious experience and completely satisfies me concerning C.W. Leadbeater’s account . . ."
White Lotus Day
Madame H. P. Blavatsky has always been a tremendous source of inspiration for all students of occultism. Not only was she well loved and remembered by members of the original Theosophical Society, she also had many friends and followers outside of the Theosophical Society. Indeed, many movements were founded outside the Theosophical Society to study her teachings. Even today, more than a century after her death, new movements are still being formed pledging personal allegiance to H.P.B. and faithfully adhering to her original teachings. This is especially true in the cyberworld of the Internet. We could almost say that many people are fiercely loyal to our founder, Madame Blavatsky.
We join all these followers and students throughout the world to commemorate the passing of Madame H.P. Blavatsky on May 8. This is the 134th anniversary of the death of one of the greatest occultists in modern history. We call this day White Lotus Day to remember with gratitude the founder of the Theosophical Society. White Lotus Day was declared by the co-founder and President Col. H. S. Olcott in 1892 as a Day of Remembrance to "express the feeling of loving regard for her who brought us the chart of the climbing Path which leads to the summit of knowledge".
Wesak Celebration
We shall celebrate Wesak Day on Monday 12 May 2025 at 11 a.m. This year it coincides with the Wesak Day in the Chinese tradition. We believe there will be a tremendous outpouring of beneficent forces on 12 May 2025 as millions of people, a great portion of the world’s population from the various Buddhist traditions, will be celebrating Wesak on that day. This, we understand, is in line with the laws of nature that divine forces will take advantage of great congregations of devotional people as useful channels for the outpouring of blessings.
As we normally do, we will have a talk giving a detailed account of the esoteric Wesak Festival including a video recording made by an Australian TV station of pilgrims gathering at the legendary Wesak Valley. Members who have attended this talk previously may be interested to know that we will be showing slides indicating what could be the actual location of the Wesak Valley which is famously thought to be in the vicinity of Mount Kailas. We will then have group meditation for 49 mins. In line with our tradition, vegetarian will be served in the celebration. Come and join this spiritual celebration on Monday, 12 May 2025, at 11 a.m.
Please note that this programme is for members only.
Significance of Occult Pledges
“Good and evil are relative, and are intensified or lessened according to the conditions by which man is surrounded. One who belongs to that which we call the ‘useless portion of mankind’, that is to say, the lay majority, is in many cases irresponsible. Crimes committed in Avidya, or ignorance, involve physical but not moral responsibilities or Karma. Take, for example, the case of idiots, children, savages, and other people who know no better. But the case of each of you, pledged to the HIGHER SELF, is quite another matter. You cannot invoke this Divine Witness with impunity, and once that you have put yourself under its tutelage, you have asked the Radiant Light to shine into and search through all the dark corners of your being; consciously you have invoked the Divine Justice of Karma to take note of your motives, to scrutinize your actions, and to enter up all in your account. The step is as irrevocable as that of the infant taking birth. Never again can you force yourselves back into the Matrix of Avidya and irresponsibility. Though you flee to the uttermost parts of the earth, and hide yourselves from the sight of man, or seek oblivion in the tumult of the social whirl, that Light will find you out and lighten your every thought, word and deed. All HPB can do is to send to each earnest one among you, a most sincerely fraternal sympathy and hope for a good outcome to your endeavors. Nevertheless, be not discouraged, but try, ever keep trying; twenty failures are not irremediable if followed by as many undaunted struggles upward. Is it not so that mountains are climbed? And know further that if Karma relentlessly records in the esotericist's account bad deeds that in the ignorant would be overlooked, yet, equally true is it that each of his good deeds is, by reason of his association with the Higher Self, a hundredfold intensified as a potency for good.”
The Golden Stairs
“Behold the Truth before you: a clean life, an open
mind, a pure heart, an eager intellect, an unveiled spiritual
perception, a brotherliness for one’s co-disciple, a readiness to give
and receive advice and instruction, a loyal sense of duty to the
Teacher, a willing obedience to the behests of Truth, once we have
placed our confidence in, and believe that Teacher to be in possession
of it; a courageous endurance of personal injustice, a brave declaration
of principles, a valiant defence of those who are unjustly attacked, and
a constant eye to the ideal of human progression and perfection which
the Secret Science (Gupta-Vidyā) depicts––these are the golden stairs up
the steps of which the learner may climb to the Temple of Divine Wisdom.
Say this to those who have volunteered to be taught by you.” These are the words of great Teachers, and I but do the bidding of one of these in repeating them to you. What is found in the letter, I, H.P.B., now say to you in the authentic words, which are: “THINK; and thinking, TRY: the goal is indeed worth all the possible effort.”
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