Cardiff Theosophical Society

206 Newport Road,

Cardiff, Wales, UK, CF24 – 1DL

 

 

 

 

Gauguin & Theosophy

 

 

 

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In the period around 1889, Paul Gauguin overwhelmingly incorporated his own figure into religious paintings. There are a handful of paintings that follow this trend, such as The Vision After the Sermon: Jacob Wrestling with the Angel, Self-Portrait: Les Miserables, oSelf-Portrait with Yellow Christ and Self-Portrait with Halo.In these paintings Gauguin initially portrays himself as a believer and then as a martyr, Christ, and the devil. Naturally this trend in his art for some another instance of folly of this deranged personality calls for an interpretation. Ziva Amishai-Maisels, in her masterly thesis  Gauguin’s Religious Themes of 1969, goes into a profound and comprehensive examination of all of the artistâ?Ts religious works. In the introduction to her analysis of this particular set of paintings, she asserts that â?othey express ideas that relate both to his own misfortunes and to nineteenth-century theories on art and on the artist’s function in society(Amishai-Maisels 72). With this, Amishai-Maisels explains the appearance of the self-portraits in terms of the artist’s philosophy about life and art tying them in to events in his life, but unfortunately she fails to see the doctrine of Theosophy which would have been familiar to Gauguin, as a force behind them. On the other hand, Thomas Buser in an article published in 1968 had declared Gauguin a theosophist, but with a focus on later paintings, entirely disregarding this particular set of religious works. These paintings, however, can also be interpreted within the spirit of Theosophy. By looking at the paintings mentioned above we can see a corresponding gradual acceptance of Theosophy on the part of Paul Gauguin, which previous art historians have always failed to see. This novel reading is important not only because it offers an explanation of the influences under which Gauguin painted, but also because these influences may be the roots of 20th century modern art.

 

 

The appearance of Theosophy after the 1880s coincided with the start of Gauguin's mature period. Gauguin's art, however, is not the only instance in which the creation of art has been driven by the theosophical beliefs of the artist. In the 20th century artists like Vasily Kandinsky and Piet Mondrian, and also Kazimir Malevich, Jackson Pollock and Paul Klee are known to have been influenced, to some extent by theosophy. This influence is most commonly associated with the former two. According to the Grove Dictionary of Art, Vasily Kandinsky was particularly interested in Theosophy as a means of "apprehending inner values". This means that Kandinsky, like Gauguin, appreciated the spiritual insight that Theosophy promised and aspired to become an initiate. According to the same source, he became familiar with the work of the major Theosophical writers like Mme Blavatsky, who originally conceived of Theosophy, and Charles Leadbeater, who wrote the book on it. His famous thesis on Abstraction, a classic work that has been studied for many years, is "replete with theosophical references and theories". Piet Mondrian, during the period of his career when he was experimenting with abstraction, went even further than Kandinsky, by becoming a member of the Theosophical Society. His art of this period is characterized by "the dominance of spirit over matter".

 

 

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Cardiff Theosophical Society

206 Newport Road,

Cardiff, Wales, UK, CF24 -1DL

 

 

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Cardiff Theosophical Society meetings are informal

and there’s always a cup of tea afterwards

 

 

Theosophy

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The Cardiff Theosophical Society Website

 

Theosophy

Wales

The National Wales Theosophy Website

 

 

Theosophy Cardiff’s Instant Guide to Theosophy

 

Cardiff Theosophical Archive

 

Cardiff Blavatsky Archive

A Theosophy Study Resource

 

Theosophy Cardiff’s Gallery of Great Theosophists

 

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The Theosophy Website that welcomes

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If you run a Theosophy Study Group, please

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This is for everybody not just people in Wales

 

Hey Look!

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Theosophy Avalon

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King Arthur Pages

 

Ocean of Theosophy

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The Most Basic Theosophy

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A quick overview of Theosophy 

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If you run a Theosophy Study Group you 

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Theosophy Starts Here

 

Quick Blasts of Theosophy

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The Blavatsky Blogger’s

Instant Guide To

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Blavatsky Calling

The Voice of the Silence Website

 

Theosophy

Nirvana

 

Cardiff Theosophy Start-Up

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An Independent Theosophical Republic

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Feelgood

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Visit the Feelgood Lodge

The main criteria for the inclusion of

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and are lightweight, amusing or entertaining.

Topics include Quantum Theory and Socks,

Dick Dastardly and Legendary Blues Singers.

 

Theosophy

The New Rock ‘n Roll

An entertaining introduction to Theosophy

 

Nothing answers questions

like Theosophy can!

The Key to Theosophy

 

Brief Theosophical Glossary

 

The Akashic Records

It’s all “water under the bridge” but everything you do

makes an imprint on the Space-Time Continuum.

 

Theosophy and Reincarnation

A selection of articles on Reincarnation

by Theosophical writers

Provided in response to the large number

of enquiries we receive on this subject

 

Theosophical Glossary

prepared by W Q Judge

 

Theosophy in the UK

 

Within the British Isles, The Adyar Theosophical Society has Groups in;

 

Bangor*Basingstoke*Billericay*Birmingham*Blackburn*Bolton*Bournemouth

Bradford*Bristol*Camberley*Cardiff*Chester*Conwy*Coventry*Dundee*Edinburgh

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Letchworth*London*Manchester*Merseyside*Middlesborough*Newcastle upon Tyne

North Devon*Northampton*Northern Ireland*Norwich*Nottingham

Perth*Republic of Ireland*Sidmouth*Southport*Sussex*Swansea*Torbay

Tunbridge Wells*Wallasey*Warrington*Wembley*Winchester*Worthing

 

 

The South of Heaven Guide to

Theosophy and Devachan

 

The South of Heaven Guide to

Theosophy and Dreams

 

The South of Heaven Guide to

Theosophy and Angels

 

Theosophy

Aardvark

No Aardvarks were harmed in the

preparation of this Website

 

Theosophy Avalon

The Theosophy Wales

King Arthur Pages

 

The Tooting Broadway

Underground Theosophy Website

The Spiritual Home of Urban Theosophy

 

The Mornington Crescent

Underground Theosophy Website

The Earth Base for Evolutionary Theosophy

 

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H P Blavatsky’s Heavy Duty

Theosophical Glossary

Published 1892

A B C D EFG H IJ KL M N OP QR S T UV WXYZ

 

 

Complete Theosophical Glossary in Plain Text Format

1.22MB

 

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Classic Introductory Theosophy Text

A Text Book of Theosophy By C W Leadbeater

 

What Theosophy Is  From the Absolute to Man

 

The Formation of a Solar System  The Evolution of Life

 

The Constitution of Man  After Death  Reincarnation

 

The Purpose of Life  The Planetary Chains

 

The Result of Theosophical Study

 

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The Occult World

By Alfred Percy Sinnett

 

Preface to the American Edition    Introduction

 

Occultism and its Adepts    The Theosophical Society

 

First Occult Experiences   Teachings of Occult Philosophy

 

Later Occult Phenomena    Appendix

 

 

The Ocean of Theosophy

William Quan Judge

 

Preface    Theosophy and the Masters    General Principles

 

The Earth Chain    Body and Astral Body    Kama – Desire

 

Manas    Of Reincarnation    Reincarnation Continued

 

Karma    Kama Loka    Devachan    Cycles

 

Septenary Constitution Of Man

 

Arguments Supporting Reincarnation

 

Differentiation Of Species Missing Links

 

Psychic Laws, Forces, and Phenomena

 

Psychic Phenomena and Spiritualism

 

 

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UK Listing of Theosophical Groups

 

Worldwide Directory of 

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International Directory of 

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WALES

Pages About Wales

General pages about Wales, Welsh History

and The History of Theosophy in Wales

 

Wales is a Principality within the United Kingdom

and has an eastern border with England.

The land area is just over 8,000 square miles.

Snowdon in North Wales is the highest mountain at 3,650 feet.

The coastline is almost 750 miles long.

 The population of Wales as at the 2001 census is 2,946,200.

 

Theosophy Wales

 

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Cardiff Theosophical Society

206 Newport Road,

Cardiff, Wales, UK, CF24 – 1DL.

 

 

 

 

 


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Mystery Benefactor Boosts Theosophy

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