Theosophical Correspondence.

Translation from German by Robert Hutwohl^[1]

          Question: — Should we warn people against blind faith in authorities?

          Answer: — One should not break the shell until the kernel has matured. One should not turn anyone away from the sect to which he belongs as long as he finds happiness in it. Even young eagles are comfortable in their warm nest, but when they grow up they begin to fly and leave the nest that has become too small for them. It is so nice and comfortable to hang on the coattails of a leader, to surrender completely to his guidance and to blindly swallow everything he says. One does not have to think about it at all and one is in perfect harmony with the other believers; but in reality this is only a dream, and the time comes for some when they feel the urge to wake up and learn to stand on their own two feet. Then he no longer feels quite comfortable in the warm nest, and as his intellectual horizons expand, the circle in which he moved seems too limited to him; then it is time for the kernel to burst out of the shell, and one can help him to do so. One would do a cripple a disservice by taking away his crutch, without which he cannot walk forward; but if his legs become usable again, he no longer needs to rely on the crutch. Also, a reasonable person who has grown out of the narrow circle of his sect will not look down with contempt on those who are still in it, but will treat them as is appropriate for them. In ordinary life, too, a teacher often takes part in the games of children in order to draw them to himself and make them receptive to a higher wisdom.

Note

^[1] Hartmann, F. (1907). “Theosophical Correspondence. Belief in authority.” Hutwohl, R. (trans.), Theosophischer Wegweiser 9, no. 1 (October), 46 [Translation from the German by Robert Hutwohl, ©2025]