Our good friend Mitch Horowitz returns in this episode to reveal the amazing life of Colonel Henry Steel Olcott (1832-1907). Our conversation starts with young Olcott’s humble beginnings, early successes in scientific agriculture, and investigations into military contractor corruption during the U.S. Civil War and the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. It was after this point that Olcott’s life took an even more interesting turn.

Mitch describes how Olcott met Madame Blavatsky. The two helped found the Theosophical Society soon thereafter. Olcott served as the first president of the organization and did a tremendous amount to advance their cause. We talk about their Mahatmas and Olcott’s experiences with the Masters. Mitch describes the fascinating story of young Mohandas Gandhi’s involvement with Theosophy. We also discuss the Herculean work Olcott did to promote Buddhism and Hinduism. It is nothing short of miraculous how a man from such humble beginnings, without a formal education, was able to influence literally billions of people.

“There is a great earnestness in the character of this man and I think that too must have had something to do with the effectiveness of Theosophy as an organization. He brought principles and ideals and sincerity into Theosophy… Part of the reason we’ve heard of Henry Olcott was … that he was a man of great character… There was something of moral substance to this man. Studying the life of Henry Steel Olcott can challenge all kinds of prejudices, received opinions, and ideas about occultism, about the Western Esoteric Tradition, about how supernaturalism played itself out in the … nineteenth and twentieth centuries… His warmth, ethics, earnestness, and sincerity made him a great man of his time.” - Mitch Horowitz

Professional audio mastering by Jason Walraven (THANK YOU!!!)

relevant links:

Mitch Horowitz (previous appearances include Podcast 21 and Podcast 42 - The Life and Work of Dr. Paul Foster Case)

“Henry Steel Olcott” Wikipedia entry

“Spiritualism” Wikipedia entry

“Madame Blavatsky” Wikipedia entry

“People from Other Worlds” by Henry S. Olcott

“Morya” Wikipedia entry

“Kuthumi” Wikipedia entry

“Ascended Master Discussion”

“The Masters Revealed: Madame Blavatsky and the Myth of the Great White Lodge” by K. Paul Johnson

“The Count De Saint Germain and H.P.B.: Two Messengers of the White Lodge” by Henry S. Olcott

“Sri Aurobindo” Wikipedia entry

“Theosophy” Wikipedia entry

“Theosophical Society” Wikipedia entry

“Theosophical Society Adyar” Wikipedia entry

official website of The Theosophical Society - Adyar

“The Theosophist October 1889 to April 1890” by H.S. Olcott

“The Theosophist October 1890 to April 1891” by H.S. Olcott

“Buddhism” Wikipedia entry

“Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi” Wikipedia entry

intro music by HipGnosis

intermission music by The Quiet Earth Orchestra - excerpt of “Simple”

outro music by Derek Trucks Band - excerpt of “Maki Madni”

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