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Annie Besant (1847–1933)

Author of Thought-Forms, 2nd edition

401+ Works 2,403 Members 64 Reviews 2 Favorited

About the Author

In the 1870s Annie Besant had already gained notoriety as an estranged Anglican priest's wife who had rejected Christianity and embraced atheism. She was a famous orator who spoke on behalf of the Freethought movement, social reform, the right to publish information on contraception, improved show more education, and Fabian socialism. Besant perplexed her critics and admirers when, in 1889, she abandoned her atheistic stance and embraced Theosophy. The Theosophical Society had been founded in 1875 by Madame Helena Blavatsky and Colonel Henry S. Olcott and had its international headquarters in India. Theosophy's outlook affirmed the mystical components of each of the world's religions, but it was influenced especially by Hindu and Buddhist thought. By the mid-1890s, Annie Besant had made India her home, and she was elected the second president of the Theosophical Society subsequent to the death of Olcott in 1907. In India, Besant made it her special mission to uplift Hindu self-esteem, which had been severely battered by British imperialism and Christian missionaries. She founded the Central Hindu College, which later was incorporated into the new Benares Hindu University. She spoke out for social reform, and from 1913 onward she undertook political agitation for Indian home rule. She was elected president of the Indian National Congress in 1918, and she was the first person to make that position an active, year-round job. Immediately thereafter, she lost her popularity because of the rise to prominence in Indian politics of Mohandas K. Gandhi. Until the end of her life, Besant increasingly turned her attention to the promotion of a young Indian boy, Jiddu Krishnamurti, as the coming World-Teacher, a messiah who would bring about a collective human transformation resulting in unity and peace among all peoples. Despite the apparently contradictory stages of Besant's life, continuity can be detected in her consistent attempts to discover the means by which human suffering could be eliminated. Besant's books and lectures were an important factor in the popularization of Eastern, particularly Hindu, religious and philosophical thought in the West. Her books continue to have an international impact, and several of them are kept in print by the Theosophical Publishing House known in the United States as Quest Books. Bescant died in 1933. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Disambiguation Notice:

Full name: Annie Wood Besant

Image credit: Courtesy of the NYPL Digital Gallery (image use requires permission from the New York Public Library)

Works by Annie Besant

Thought-Forms, 2nd edition (1969) 146 copies
Esoteric Christianity (1971) 143 copies
The Ancient Wisdom (1897) 138 copies
Thought-Forms (1901) 95 copies
Karma (1905) 61 copies
An Introduction to Yoga (1908) 54 copies
Study in Consciousness (1924) 48 copies
Man and His Bodies (1901) 41 copies
The Spiritual Life (1991) 32 copies
A Study in Karma (1975) 31 copies
The Path of Discipleship (1896) 31 copies
Death and After (1914) 30 copies
Riddle of Life (1961) 28 copies
The Seven Principles of Man (1968) 27 copies
Reincarnation (1947) 27 copies
Dharma (1964) 24 copies
In the Outer Court (1906) 22 copies
The Masters (1977) 19 copies
The Dragon's Toothache (2016) 16 copies
My Path to Atheism (2010) 16 copies
Avatâras (1902) 16 copies
Mala's Silver Anklets (2011) 15 copies
Doctrine of the Heart (1914) 12 copies
Seven great religions (1992) 11 copies
Four Great Religions (1897) 10 copies
Theosophy (1912) 10 copies
Whimsy (Karadi Tales) (2014) 10 copies
The Basis of Morality (2010) 10 copies
London Lectures of 1907 (2012) 9 copies
The Self and Its Sheaths (1948) 8 copies
Autobiographical Sketches (2009) 8 copies
Creating Character (1951) 7 copies
Talks With Class (1922) 7 copies
A Dirty Filthy Book (1981) 7 copies
Some Problems of Life (1904) 7 copies
A Study in Consciousness (1880) 7 copies
The Noble Eightfold Path (2009) 6 copies
The Case for India (2012) 6 copies
Memory And Its Nature (1935) 5 copies
Zoroastrianism (2005) 5 copies
Buddhism (1963) 5 copies
The ideals of theosophy (1912) 5 copies
Duties of the Theosophist (1917) 5 copies
Jainism (1948) 4 copies
Mysticism (1914) 4 copies
Laws of the Higher Life (1997) 4 copies
Hinduism 4 copies
Mans Life in Three Worlds (1923) 4 copies
Psychology (1919) 3 copies
Darma 3 copies
The Doctrine of the Heart (2018) 3 copies
The Great Plan (2014) 3 copies
Esipihassa 3 copies
India 3 copies
Sanatana-dharma (1974) 2 copies
El Yoga 2 copies
THE ETERNAL NOW 2 copies
Tara's Day Put 2 copies
Leer des harten 2 copies
Islam (1946) 2 copies
India: A Nation 2 copies
A Vida Espiritual (1994) 1 copy
Death—and After? (2019) 1 copy
Three Paths 1 copy
Lectures 1 copy
Hindu Ideals 1 copy
The Socialist Movement (2015) 1 copy
Doutrina Do Coracao, A (2012) 1 copy
Talks With A Class (2012) 1 copy
The Pterodactyl's Egg (2014) 1 copy
The Theosophic Life (2012) 1 copy
Az ősi bölcsesség (2009) 1 copy
La sagesse antique (1987) 1 copy
Uudistuskysymyksiä (1918) 1 copy
Verso il tempio (1994) 1 copy
L'Avenir Imminent (2015) 1 copy
L'homme et ses corps (1994) 1 copy
Chimica occulta (2018) 1 copy
Initiation 1 copy
La Reencarnacion (2010) 1 copy
Introduccion Al Yoga (2009) 1 copy
Réincarnation : Karma (1996) 1 copy
Les formes pensées (2013) 1 copy

Associated Works

The Bhagavad Gita (0400) — Translator, some editions — 9,321 copies
Fabian Essays in Socialism (1891) — Contributor — 62 copies

Tagged

(185) 1. TEOSOFÍA (81) Arjuna (46) Bhagavad Gita (257) classics (110) eastern philosophy (48) epic (58) fiction (67) Gita (46) Hindu (160) Hindu epics (50) Hindu philosophy (58) Hindu scriptures (74) Hinduism (997) India (395) Indian (64) Indian literature (90) Indian philosophy (84) Krishna (105) literature (96) non-fiction (262) occult (65) philosophy (479) poetry (222) read (52) religion (1,211) sacred texts (154) Sanskrit (98) Sanskrit text (56) Scripture (96) spiritual (50) spiritual wisdom (52) spirituality (314) Theosophy (327) to-read (182) translation (68) unread (47) World Religions (57) yoga (156) yoga philosophy (59)

Common Knowledge

Legal name
Besant, Annie Wood
Birthdate
1847-10-01
Date of death
1933-09-20
Gender
female
Nationality
UK
Birthplace
Clapham, London, England, UK
Place of death
India
Occupations
women's rights activist
writer
lecturer
theosophist
Relationships
Besant, Walter (brother-in-law)
Organizations
Fabian Society
London School Board
Secular Society
Social Democratic Federation
Theosophical Society
Short biography
Annie Besant was a leading women's rights activist, writer and orator, and supporter of Irish and Indian self-rule. She was also a prominent socialist and Theosophist.
Disambiguation notice
Full name: Annie Wood Besant

Members

Reviews

I can't rate this book. I found out about it while reading another book about mistaken element discoveries and it referenced the idea of occult chemistry. So I picked this one up to see what it was about.

Interesting from a history of science/chemistry perspective for me; but, most of it was unreadable. I read the preface and part 1, then skimmed the book until I got to the appendix and then read it (sort of).

A note on this book. It was first published in 1919 so the copyright has expired. You'll find any number of different isbns for it because different people do a print-on-demand of books like this one. The quality can vary depending on how the reproduce it.… (more)
 
Flagged
alan_chem | Feb 28, 2023 |
He unfolded and perfected his psychic faculties under the guidance of his adept teacher and in 1893 commenced his clairvoyant investigations, on occasions collaborating with Annie Besant, the second President of the Theosophical Society. His lectures worldwide presented a new viewpoint to thousands of people. It was he who discovered the great potential of J. Krishnamurti and brought him up with a view to his future work. This book is an imprint of the Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar, and is imported from India. (Quest)… (more)
 
Flagged
DClodgeTS | Mar 30, 2022 |

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Statistics

Works
401
Also by
4
Members
2,403
Popularity
#10,675
Rating
3.9
Reviews
64
ISBNs
604
Languages
15
Favorited
2

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