Madame Blavatsky

The one and only Madame Blavatsky properly known as Helena Petrovna Blavatsky is a torch barrier for the spiritualists era. Her life was filled with adventure and remarkable knowledge that opened many doors. She was born in Ekatrinoslav, South Russia (now Dimin, Ukraine) august 12th 1831, July 31st (Julian calendar). As a child Blavatsky was described as an authoritative, yet deeply sensitive soul who from day one was aware of her important role in the world. She was the daughter of Colonel Peter von Hahn, a German officer in Russian service and a noble woman from an old Russian family, Helena Andreyevna Fadeyeva. Helena Andreyevna Fadeyeva was an author who published dozens of novels under the pen name of Zenaida R. Both families the Von Hahns and Fadeyevas were well known and respected in Germany and Russia.
 
 In 1831 the first wave of the deadly cholera disease descented upon Russia and in order to ensure her soul would be saved baby Helena was rushed to be babtised soon after she was born. The mystery and wonder of Mademe Blavatsky begin during her baptismal rite, as the priest in the act of renouncing the Evil One and his deeds, caught fire. The child aunt of Blavastky holding a candle in a row behind the officiating priest nodded sleepily and inadvertently set fire to his robes. The interest and fascination of the occult and otherworldly things was apparent in Blavatsky from an early age, as she was called " Sedmitchka," by her servants. Sedmitchka, roughly translating into the number seven is given to those born on in the seventh month who were considered by Russian superstition to have a special connection to otherworldly things.
 
 Helena Andreyevna Fadeyeva passed away at the age of 28 when Helena was 11 years old. A statement made by her mother at the time of her death suggests that the relationship between the two was distant "Ah well, perhaps it is best that I am dying, so at least I shall be spared seeing what befalls Helena. Of one thing I am certain, her life will not be that of other women, and she will have much to suffer." Soon after her mothers passing Helena was taken to be raised by her grandparents Andrey Mikhailovitch de Fadeyev; Privy Councillor to the Tsar and Princess Helena Pavlovna Delgorovna.
 
 At the age of 17 the rebelious Helene Blavatsky married a man twice her senior, Nikifor V. Blavatsky. There are quite a few different speculations as to why she married him. It has been said that the marriage was decided on whim by Helena to free herself of her surroundings or that she was scolded by her governess by saying that she could not even get an old man to marry her. To prove the governess wrong Helena The marriage was short lived as H.Blavatsky escaped her new husband a mere 3 months later and returned to her grandfather. Upon seeing his granddaughter on the run from her husband, Andrey Mikhailovitch de Fadeyev,quickly shipped her of to her father who was retired and living near Saint Petersburg. On her way to Odessa top meet her father, who had traveeled two thousand miles to meet her, Helena never made it. She had missed the steamer, and sailed away with the skipper of an English bark bound for Constantinople, Turkey.
 
 The events between 1848-1858 are rather sketchy. During this time Helena claims to have visited Egypt, Greece, France, Quebec, England, South America, Mexico, India and Germany, along with spending 2 years in Tibet. In 1858 she returned to Russia to visit her sister Vera. While in Russia she meet and began a relationship with Agardi Metrovich who many have claimed she had a child with by the name of Yuri. Yuri was said to have been a sickly and deformed child who Helena took to with her around the world to try and cure. Yuri died on one those trips and was returned to their homeland of Russia to be buried. Helena has been known to deny that the child was hers, saying it was of Metrovich's friends. It is not known who the child belong to, as Helena never confirmed he was her and there was no documentation of him.
 
 Arriving in New York City on July 7th 1873 Helena began impressing people with her extraordinary psychic abilities. People were astonished to see her be able to levitate, use telepathy, telekinesis, produce objects out of thing air and much more. n 1874 Helena met Henry Steel Olcott, a lawyer and a journalist who covered the Spiritualist phenomena. In 1875 along with Olcott and William Quan Judge, Helena founded the Theosophical Society. The Theosophical Society was an organization formed to advance the spiritual doctrines and altruistic living known as Theosophy. Theosophy hold the belief that all religions are attempts by humanity to approach the absolute, and as such each religion has a portion of the truth. By 1882 the Theosophical Society became an international organization, and it was at this time that she moved the headquarters to Adyar near Madras, India. Before she went to India Helena become a naturalised US citizen in doing so becoming the first Russian woman to be granted U.S citizenship, it was widely believed that she acquired U.S citizenship so that she would not be considered a Russian spy in India.

The society headquartered here for some time when she  finally returned to England. She became unable to walk and suffered from various diseases. Helena died May 8, 1891 in the company of friends. On May 11 her body was cremated with a third of her ashes remaining in Europe, and a third going to America and India each. In her memory May 8 is celebrated by Theosophists as White Lotus Day.