The Early S.P.R.’s Friends: Blavatsky and Westcott

Man, Myth and Magic’s prospectus on H.P. Blavatsky haunts us, raking up the past to cue us that the S.P.R. was “not unfavorable to theosophy [Lucifer worship] at the time of its beginning.”59 The S.P.R. historian details:

In the summer of 1884 Mme. Blavatsky visited England and was interviewed by a committee of the S.P.R. appointed to investigate phenomena connected with the Theosophical Society. The committee was considerably impressed by the evidence of Mme. Blavatsky and her friends in a report, circulated within the society but not published, declared…’it seems that there is a prima facie case…’60

A prima facie case, according to Webster is, “Evidence sufficient to raise a presumption of fact or establish the fact in question unless rebutted.” The Founders of Psychical Research reports, “The Sidgwick group had at first been rather impressed with Madame Blavatsky.” 61 She was, as documented in other sections of this book, an open Satanist. Her track record at that point (1884) included the occult tome Isis Unveiled, the institution of the Theosiphical Society in 1875 and the editorship of its newsletter, Lucifer.