Translation from the German by Robert Hutwohl[1]
If one wants to clarify something, it is useful, to avoid mistakes, to call the thing by its real name. The word “Theosophy” (from “theos” God and “sophia” = wisdom) means the supreme wisdom or the wisdom of God in the universe, which is above all human intellectual concepts, because the spirit of God in the universe can only be known spiritually. As the Apostle Paul teaches, it is “the hidden wisdom of God,” which does not belong to the pseudo-knowledge of this world, but “was intended for the glorification of man who was born again in the spirit of God.” It is therefore not exactly a sign of modesty when someone claims to be a “theosophist” because he thereby claims to be in possession of divine wisdom.The expression “philotheosophist” (from philos = friend) therefore seems much more appropriate, which denotes a man who loves and aspires to the highest wisdom, but does not boast of possessing it.
Theosophy is knowledge of God and means the spiritual knowledge of the divine being, which is inherent in all human beings and is the cause of the existence of all creatures. It is thus the highest, true, inward knowledge of self, and not a system of any theories, articles of faith, views, or opinions, but in modern times the sense of this word has been misunderstood and its meaning misconstrued, and the great multitude nowadays uses it to denote a certain system, in which are set forth the teachings of the sages as to the creation of the world, the composition of the universe and man, the states of the soul after the death of the body, etc.; but what is peculiar about these teachings is that they can only become fully clear to the reader when he himself has become a theosophist, that is, when he is led to the knowledge of truth through love.
Theosophy in the true sense of the word is neither a religious nor a scientific system, but the light of self-knowledge which dawns within man when he outgrows self-delusion and feels his oneness with the Creator of the universe in all his works.
Theosophy is the self-knowledge of the truth which enlightens the mind of man who has outgrown all prejudices. It is self-evident and needs no proof; rather every man must possess a certain degree of his own reason or self-knowledge if he is to know whether there is truth in a proof.
Theosophy is the spiritual-divine life in man himself, his highest reason. It is the intuitive knowledge of what is true in the human heart, which has nothing to do with fantasies, superstition, fanaticism, speculation and delusions of authority. It is that spiritual knowledge which springs from the self-awareness of the human being who has awakened to spiritual life.
Theosophy is the basis of all science and all religion; because it is the self-knowledge of the truth, without which there is no true knowledge and no spiritual life, but only theories and opinions. Philosophy, as Plato teaches, is the knowledge of effects and their causes, but theosophy is the self-knowledge of the first and innermost cause underlying all appearances and effects. It is the realization of the sole divine Self.
Speculative philosophy draws conclusions and leads to probabilities; theosophy is the self-knowledge of truth.
Theosophy is the great secret, the key to solving the riddle of the world. It is the revelation of truth which takes place when the Spirit of God descends and enlightens the soul of man. Theosophy embraces all knowledge and perception; for the whole universe proceeded by the will of God from his wisdom. All sciences, religions and systems of any kind are at best just paths that lead to self-knowledge.
Theosophy is the self-knowledge of one’s own being arising from one’s own outer and inner feeling, perception and experience, both the human and the divine properties of body, soul and spirit, as well as the knowledge of the corresponding levels of existence in the universe and the connection and interaction of the forces of the same name acting in the macrocosm and microcosm.
Theosophy is the knowledge of the immortal part in man, which can only come to those who have become conscious of immortal existence within themselves.
Philosophy, in the ordinary sense of the word, is the love of investigating truth by roundabout means, by external observation, comparison, and inference, the objective knowledge of phenomena in nature; Theosophy is direct self-knowledge of the essence of things, conditioned by one’s own becoming. Philosophy is the love of true self-knowledge and the resulting devotion to it.
There can be no “theoretical” theosophy because the word theosophy means “self-knowledge” and all self-knowledge is based on one’s own practical experience. Nor is there “Christian,” “Buddhist,” or “Indian” theosophy; for theosophy is knowledge of God, and God is neither a “Christian,” nor a “Buddhist,” nor a “Brahmin.” Theosophy is the self-knowledge of truth on which all religious systems are built. In such are contained the teachings of the sages.
Wisdom is the power of discerning between good and evil, justice and injustice, choosing good and rejecting evil. Anything that elevates and ennobles a person is good; what hinders or humiliates his ennobling is evil.
The tenets of theosophy are those which wisdom itself teaches to those who love truth, and in whose soul and mind it reveals itself, and whose mind it enlightens. “Theosophical teachings” are called those doctrines which come from people who have come to the self-knowledge of the true. This includes the wise and enlightened of all nations, from the beginning of creation to the present day.
If the true meaning of the aforesaid designations were recorded, there would be less confusion and contention among those seeking the truth.
God is truth, and therefore every truth-loving man is a philotheosophist, no matter what path he seeks truth or what system he adheres to. Everyone seeks the truth in their own way, and everyone eventually reaches the goal, albeit after many existences, but the shortest way is: to hear the teachings of the wise and follow them.
True as the teachings of the sages may be to those who have grasped them spiritually, they are still only theory to those who have only come to know them intellectually; for self-knowledge arises only from one’s own experience. One cannot attain self-knowledge of a truth which one does not possess oneself; therefore it is necessary to absorb the truth so that it can be recognized as part of one’s self. Only when it becomes a living force within us does it become our property.
Anything that we have only learned from hearsay or from books is not really our property, but the property of those who recognized it themselves because they owned it themselves. Most of our science consists only in a knowledge of experiences made by other people, which are not a part of our true selves and are therefore impermanent.
That I have a visible and tangible body I need not first learn from books and need no other proof than that I recognize it as my body; but if I want to know the nature of my inner bodily organs, the study of anatomy and physiology will show me the way. The situation is similar with my astral body, which I can only be convinced of owning when astral consciousness has awakened in me and I recognize the properties of this “supernatural” body.
The word “psychic” is a relative term. We cannot know anything in truth if we have no sense of knowing it. We would know nothing of light, heat, electricity, etc., if we had no senses to perceive these external forces. It is the same with our inner, spiritual powers. An inner sense, a spiritual ability to perceive, must also be present to recognize them. Without it we could neither feel nor recognize truth, virtue, love or justice. Without this sense we would be without conscience and without intuition, without insight and without reason. There are such idiots not only among the illiterate, but also among a certain class of scholars in whom intellectual acuity is highly developed while they have lost all sense of truth. Large brains but hardened hearts!
At our current level of evolution, our spiritual powers, living faith, free will, spiritual cognition, etc., are still little developed and many people are not yet aware of them. That is why such powers are called “occult,” i.e., “hidden” powers. They do not belong to the animal, but to the intelligent, spiritual human being.
During his existence on earth man has the task of developing from a lower level to a higher one, of soaring up from an earlier animal state to an intellectual and finally to a divine-spiritual life. At each higher level man enters a higher state of self-awareness, of the ability to perceive and be cognizant, at each level a new heaven or spiritual horizon opens up to him, so to speak.
On the way to self-knowledge we can, even without external instruction, come to the realization that both lower and higher forces are at work within us, namely a life of instincts and passions, as well as a higher thought life, higher feeling and thinking. Also, reason and experience teach us that there is motion at the basis of all life, and that no motion is conceivable without some substance which can be moved.
This substance, for want of a better term, we may call “primordial matter,” “Ākāśa,” or “ether.” All visible and invisible bodies are made up of vibrations of this substance.
A still deeper insight into the mysteries of nature teaches us that the macrocosm is composed in a similar way to the microcosm, that is, that man’s nature corresponds to and is a product of the great nature surrounding him. The same forces that are present in the universe are also at work in it, and like attracts like, i.e., the spiritual ether vibrations existing in it are strengthened by similar vibrations penetrating into it. Through this man receives his spiritual nourishment, which can be useful or harmful to him, depending on the type of vibrations which he admits through his will and thinking and which he absorbs.
As in the human soul, one also distinguishes in the soul of the macrocosm a lower or “astral” and a higher or spiritual region. The lower vibrations, which (metaphysically speaking) affect man horizontally, come to him from the astral plane and feed his lower instincts and desires. The vibrations acting on him perpendicularly from above come from the regions of the spirit and elevate him spiritually. His spiritual growth, his higher feeling and thinking are based on absorbing these higher vibrations.
While the lower kingdoms, the mineral, plant and animal kingdoms, have no free choice, but their development is governed and shaped by generally applicable natural laws, an insightful person is free to promote his own development by surrendering to higher thinking and feeling surrenders and thereby overcomes the lower influences. Anyone who turns to the highest in his feeling and thinking and surrenders to it and absorbs its influences in his consciousness, he will be elevated by it and can thereby reach the highest knowledge.
Note:
[1] Philotheosophy [Philotheosophie. Franz Hartmann, M.D. [Theosophischer Wegweiser 6, no. 4 (January 1904), 113-121] This article was reformatted from the original, but with the content unchanged other than fixing minor typos. Translation from the German by Robert Hutwohl, ©2025}