Knowledge is man's greatest inheritance; why, then, should he not attempt to reach it by every possible road?

—Light on the Path

The essence of Theosophy is the perfect harmonizing of the divine with the human in man, the adjustment of his god-like qualities and aspirations, and their sway over the terrestrial or animal passions in him. Kindness, absence of every ill feeling or selfishness, charity, good-will to all beings, and perfect justice to others as to one's self, are its chief features. He who teaches Theosophy preaches the gospel of good-will; and the converse of this is true also—he who preaches the gospel of good-will, teaches Theosophy.

—Five Messages

The Theosophical Movement is the movement of ideas—ideas that have the potentiality of changing the "mind and the Buddhi of the race." Those who launched the Movement for our era and generation and those who are behind the Movement have entrusted to posterity the solemn responsibility of keeping these lofty ideas alive and floating. In "A Curious Tale," Mr. Judge mentions that once the great Masters had settled themselves in Ireland and were tending and keeping alive the fire in various towers. When the time came for them to go away, they left behind strict injunctions to watch the fires, in every tower, and take care so that no fires on these towers should go out. The tale goes on that when the one who was entrusted with the task of watching the last burning fire became inattentive for a few moments—as he glanced at the fires on the other towers that had died—to his horror his own fire expired. Obviously, it refers to the fire of spiritual knowledge, which needs to be kept burning, and the task is especially daunting when the cycle is descending. Without getting distracted or despaired by other dying fires, one needs to pay attention to the fire entrusted to one's care. Our magazine, THE THEOSOPHICAL MOVEMENT, has been contributing its mite, and the dedication of a few earnest students has kept the fire burning, incessantly, for the last 75 years.

As it enters its 76th Volume, it is good to remind ourselves that it is "a magazine devoted to the Living of the Higher Life." But to fulfil this purpose it is essential to lead the life necessary. "The Lamp burns bright, when wick and oil are clean," says The Voice of the Silence. The "pure flame" of the life-giving philosophy can result if "wick and oil" are clean. As the departing Masters in the Curious Tale—referred above—warned, the ability to keep the fires burning depends upon inward purity. Thus:

When the great Masters had to go away...the warning was also given that, if the duties of life were neglected, if charity, duty, and virtue were forgotten, the power to keep these fires alive would gradually disappear. The decadence of the virtues would coincide with the failure of the fires. (Letters That Have Helped Me)

As we work to keep alive the pure flame of the life-giving philosophy, we are being continually helped by the Great Beings who work from behind the scenes. Mr. Judge writes:

There are among us every day many disciples ("Chelas") who are engaged in fanning the flame of spiritual illumination wherever they find it among the members. Their influence is...exerted...upon any one of any class who has tried to understand theosophy for the sake of others and in order that he may communicate to others in his turn. Not only has this been asserted by the leaders in the movement, but in the experience of many of us we have seen help extended to those who are in earnest for their fellow-man. (The Heart Doctrine, pp. 74-75)

Nothing new or "original" is given in these pages, but at the same time there is the great responsibility of giving out the teachings without dilution or distortion and using quotations whenever necessary, thereby inducing the readers to turn to the original works.

As Mr. Judge points out:

No writer can express his thoughts in a way that will be exactly and wholly comprehended by every reader, and authors in theosophic literature are only, in fact, trying to present their own particular understanding of old doctrines which the readers would do much better with if they devoted more time to thinking them out for themselves. (Vernal Blooms, p. 73)

Living in this age, with its obsession for the "new and exciting," we need to remind ourselves that there is nothing new under the sun. Many thinkers have asserted that nothing is said, written or imagined, that has not been anticipated by men in the past. Goethe had the humility and insight to admit his indebtedness to many:

Every one of my writings has been furnished to me by a thousand different persons; a thousand things, wise and foolish, have brought me, without suspecting it, the offering of their thoushts, faculties, and experience. My work is an aggregation of beings taken from the whole of nature; it bears the name of Goethe. ("Thus Have I Heard," p. 148)

And yet, when we are able to catch both the spirit and the letter of the teachings and are able to convey the same, we are, in a sense, being original. Because it is said: "Perfect understanding is tantamount to originality." There are three kinds of debts that each individual has to pay: Deva runa (debt to gods), Pitri runa (debt to Pitris or forefathers) and Rishi runa (debt to Teachers). By keeping pure and alive the teachings and passing them on to the best of our ability, we fulfil the debt to our Teachers.

"It is life and its sorrows that destroy our peace, and every human heart wants to know the reason for it," says Mr. Judge. We must therefore give out doctrines that will furnish the answer. H.P.B. says that "it is that philosophy that tends to diminish, instead of adding to the sum of human misery, which is the best." Hence, the magazine, to deserve its name, must repeatedly expound the teachings of Karma, Rebirth, God, nature of man and his fate after death, and so on—even at the risk of appearing dull and boring. For, as Mr. Judge writes:

A B C of Theosophy should be taught all the time, and this, not only for the sake of outsiders, but also for the sake of the members who are, I very well know, not so far along as to need the elaborate work all the time. And it is just because the members are not well grounded that they are not able themselves to get in more inquirers....If the simple truths practically applied as found in Theosophy are presented, you will catch at last some of the best people—real workers and valuable members....It is just this floating in the clouds which sometimes prevents a Branch from getting on. (Letters That Have Helped Me)

It is necessary to continually keep before the public the same ideas. As Mr. Crosbie suggests, "In the swirl of engrossing events, man needs reminding." Repetition is necessary also for the teachings to sink in, and bring about change in one's mental and moral nature—which is gradual.

We cannot at once alter the constitutional tendencies of the atoms of our brains, nor in a flash change ourselves....We require to have patience, not with the system of theosophy, but with ourselves, and be willing to wait for the gradual effect of the new ideas upon us....The taking up of these ideas is, in effect, a new mental incarnation, and we just as is the case of a new manvantara, have to evolve from the old estate and with care gradually eradicate the former bias. (The Heart Doctrine, pp. 81-82)

Every earnest worker recognizes that for effective exposition of the philosophy he must study. "It is not the mere reading of books, but rather long, earnest, careful thought upon that which we have taken up....A few books well read, well analyzed, and thoroughly digested are better than many books read over once" (Vernal Blooms, pp. 66 and 74). The words of the Teachers are instinct with a power of their own. Mr. Crosbie cautions:

Students have missed much by careless reading. If this is a Movement inspired by Masters, and if H.P.B. and Judge were Their mouthpieces, there is the necessity for looking into the meaning behind the words They used....I do not think that They used words purposelessly. (The Friendly Philosopher, p. 389)

Let us all learn to be good readers and good listeners. As Mr. Judge observes, some people live to drink while others drink to live. Similarly, there are many who live to read while others read so that they may learn how to live. Often, we learn the most when we disagree with the author. H.P.B.'s advice to the readers of Lucifer, applies equally to the readers of the present magazine. She wrote:

Justice demands that when the reader comes across an article in this magazine which does not immediately approve itself to his mind by chiming in with his own peculiar ideas, he should regard it as a problem to solve rather than as a mere subject of criticism. Let him endeavour to learn the lesson which only opinions differing from his own can teach him. Let him be tolerant...and postpone his judgement till he extracts from the article the truth it must contain, adding this new acquisition to his store. (Lucifer, January 1888)

Let us invoque the blessings of the Great Ones to give us strength and wisdom to carry on the work and reach all those—through the medium of the magazine—"who sit starving for the bread of wisdom," and who would be otherwise inaccessible.

Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men.

—Martin Luther King