Human Regeneration – part twenty-three
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Published: Monday, 17 June 2019 14:30
Radha Burnier – India
[Recognizing regeneration as the kernel of all Theosophical work, the International Theosophical Centre at Naarden, the Netherlands, jointly with the Federation of Theosophical Societies in Europe, organized two seminars in July 1990, with a number of office bearers, workers and members of the Society from different countries as participants. Proceedings of the seminar were published as a book under the title Human Regeneration: Lectures and Discussion (Amsterdam: Uitgeverij der Theosofische Vereniging in Nederland, 1990). This chapter (discussions) is here slightly revised.]
INDIVIDIAL AND GROUP WORK FOR REGENERATION
One of the preliminary documents about these seminars proposes the creation of a European Federation of Young Theosophists, Is there any intention in the President's mind to promote such a division?
RB: The intention was not in the Presidents mind, because the President knew nothing about it.
CB: Perhaps we should not try to form a federation or to organize the work of the young; let them come and be with us. They will find their own activities which we need not organize.
Now we exchange letters as equals interested in the same things, To separate people just on grounds of age is just as wrong in my view as to separate them on grounds of race, creed, sex, caste or color and thus we should add age to our first object. Let there be no discrimination on any ground at all.
IH: I would disapprove heartily of any attempt to organize younger people as a separate group with their own meetings. I see no reason for it at all and regard it as divisive. As we have had some autobiographical discourses, I will add to them. I also began to read theosophical books at fifteen and on my sixteenth birthday I was given Life in Freedom, by Krishnamurti, During the following year, I, of my own sweet will became a vegetarian. This was very useful for the improvement of my French, because in my senior class at school we had a French lady who persuaded us to converse in French. So I seized the opportunity. I was a militant vegetarian and a militant reincarnationist and so I learnt to express myself on these subjects in French. I made no converts, but I continued in this way during my university years. Every meal became a debate about the virtues of vegetarianism. When I began to go to theosophical meetings, my mother was not too happy, not because I was officially a Roman Catholic, but simply because of the clothes that some of the old ladies wore! You may have seen some pictures of Dr. Besant, wearing what seems a hybrid between a sari and a nightgown! During the last twelve months, I have been able to admit to the Society two schoolboys. One was only fifteen when he first wrote. He had read a great many books on theosophy and kindred subjects.
More recently I admitted another schoolboy. Now we exchange letters as equals interested in the same things. To separate people just on grounds of age is just as wrong in my view as to separate them on grounds of race, creed, sex, caste or color and thus we should add age to our first object. Let there be no discrimination on any ground at all.
Read more: Human Regeneration – part twenty-three
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