William Quan Judge
William Quan Judge ( born April 13, 1851 in Dublin, Ireland, † March 21, 1896 in New York City ) was an Irish / American lawyer, author of esoteric works, Theosophist and one of the founders of the Theosophical Society (TG ). After the first split in the TG he founded the Theosophical Society in America ( TGinA ), whose president he became.
Life and work
Childhood, Youth and Marriage
William Quan Judge was born on April 13, 1851 in Dublin, Ireland, the son of Frederic H. Judge and Alice Mary Quan. Therefore, his double name " Quan Judge" led forth. Even as a child he lost his mother and his father emigrated in 1864 with a total of six children in the United States, where he settled in Brooklyn. When we are young Judge lost his father and began to study law in 1869 in New York. In April 1872 he received the U.S. citizenship and in May of that year he was, after completing his studies, admitted in New York as a lawyer. This profession he practiced in the following years with average grades and he brought him therefore even modest income a. In 1874 he married the teacher Ella M. Smith, from the connection with Smith showed a daughter, but already died at the turn of 1878/79 from diphtheria. 1893 the family moved to New York. Smith was devout Methodist and leaned Theosophy from 1896 until the death of Judges, but then she changed her attitude and joined the TG.
Founding of the Theosophical Society
Even by his father, who was in contact with the Freemasons, Judge had been brought up in an enlightened mind and was interested in various religions, but also esoteric thoughts aroused his curiosity. In 1874 he read an advance copy of Henry Steel Olcott 's book People from the other world and sought and subsequently took contact with the author and Helena Blavatsky. Judge had the idea and gave Blavatsky the impetus for a society for the study of the occult sciences, and on September 8 in 1875 Judge, Olcott, Blavatsky, inter alia, the " Theosophical Society " ( = TS = Theosophical Society (TG ) ). On November 17, 1875 Olcott was elected on the proposal Judges as the first president of the TG, Judge himself was Secretary General. The next few years brought addition to his work for the TG an intensive examination of esoteric and religious issues, especially in dialogue with Blavatsky and Olcott. Here, Judge got the equipment for his later work as a writer and the future leadership of TG in the USA. After Judges own data Blavatsky also brought him into contact with so-called Masters of Wisdom. Have given these " masters" are to be both appeared to him alone, and Olcott and Blavatsky and instructions or notes, both orally and in the form of so-called "Master Letters ". Since these statements were not verifiable, the veracity of which is disputed.
As a lawyer and businessman
As Blavatsky and Olcott departed the end of 1878 to India, Judge wanted to accompany them unconditionally; As this is his financial capabilities far exceeded, and he had to care for his wife, he had to stay in the U.S.. In the following years he tried to raise the necessary funds to companies through speculation and investments. To this end, he traveled to Venezuela to unlock a lead mine, but the project proved to be a complete failure. Worse, he became infected in the country with Chagas' disease, which he never got rid of his life and which was responsible for his early death in 1896. Even a business adventure in Mexico ended in a fiasco. 1883 Judge was back in the U.S., due to his long absences had become his law firm went bankrupt in New York and he had a debt, which he laboriously abstotterte in the following years. Beginning of 1885 was Judge at another law firm in New York work, and he retained this position until 1894, then his poor health forced him to stop. Until his death in 1896 he lived on a pension of American TG.
Standstill and travel to India
Since the departure Olcott 's and Blavatsky 's to India, on 17 December 1878 Major General Abner Doubleday, a veteran of the Civil War, on an interim basis president of the New York -TG had become. This had rather be persuaded by Blavatsky to it than that he would have been qualified for this task. Due to the frequent absence Judges in his capacity as Secretary-General, lacked the skilled leadership and the TG in America was like during this time a torso, it was nothing more. It was not until 1883, when Judge gave his final unsuccessful business, he found time for the TG. This year, 1883, he founded the Aryan Theosophical Society of New York, whose president he became. But in early 1884, he got the necessary funds, by whom is not known to go to India, with the result that the American TG again orphaned. About London, where he met Alfred Percy Sinnett and Francesca Arundale, he traveled to Paris where he met Blavatsky and Olcott, on their trip to Europe ( February-December 1884) had done there station. Since at this time, differences between Blavatsky and Emma and Alexis Coulomb, two employees of the Theosophical Society in Adyar, came, he sat, as the authorized representative of Blavatsky, his trip to India continued to see there to the right. On August 10, 1884, he met at the headquarters of TG in Adyar one, dealt with the matter, but could not prevent the resulting Coulomb affair and left early October 1884 without having achieved anything for New York. On this voyage he met for the first time along with Albert ES Smythe (AES Smythe ), who later became Secretary General of the TG in Canada.
New beginning and expansion of the TG
This year, 1884, Henry Steel Olcott, President of the TG, called by London councils more control in life, including also one for America, which should coordinate and promote the fortunes of the individual theosophical branches and groups. The New York -TG, with Judge as General Secretary, and the Judge directed Aryan Theosophical Society of New York, were under the American Control Council. This advice, together with its chairman, Elliott Coues, was extremely unpopular and as Olcott to the Control gave the order to choose a the Council, shall have Board, came the break. The members of the Control Council decided at a meeting in October 1886 Coues did not attend, the resolution of the Council and, instead, the creation of the American Section of the TG ( ASTG ). All groups, branches and centers of TG in America should be represented in the ASTG, and the line will be performed by a person, Secretary and Treasurer into one. William Quan Judge was elected to this office, and was thus Olcott, reports directly to the President in Adyar. Olcott simply accepted the new order and Coues, who asked not to come to terms with the situation, was excluded from the June 1889 ASTG.
Now Judge began integral to bind the existing groups to the ASTG and at the same time explore new territory. The magazine The Path ( Path ), founded in April 1886 by him, now served as official organ of ASTG, recruited new members and promoted the cohesion of the entire organization. Extensive travels with numerous lectures led to the establishment of new branches and centers and gradually the company has grown by about 12 lodges at its founding in October 1886 to 101 lodges until 28 April 1895 the separation of Adyar.
Other Tasks
1888 Olcott Judge appointed Vice President of the TG, and the same year he was also Blavatsky Head of the Esoteric Section ( ES) appointed in America. After Blavatsky 's death, on May 8, 1891, he led, together with Annie Besant, the overall ES. Judge put the TG at the World Parliament of Religions in 1893 in Chicago, which was held in the framework of the World Exhibition held there, before. All these additional activities increased the workload for Judge enormous. In addition, he wrote, often under a pseudonym, articles for magazines such as The Path or Lucifer among other things, and wrote books. Among his publications particularly the 1893 published work, The Ocean of Theosophy is emphasized ( = The Ocean of Theosophy ). It is a summary of The Secret Doctrine Blavatsky 's and is considered one of the best and most understandable, Introductions to Theosophy.
Separation of Adyar
By the death of Helena Blavatsky 's on May 8, 1891, probably as a result of his arduous journeys, the Olcott 's health deteriorated. For this reason, he published his intention to resign as president of the TG in Adyar. Then beat the ASTG and TG Judge, the European section as his successor. Although Olcott was not officially resigned, the European section was mistakenly believe that just happened, and this was selected as the new President Judge. As Olcott learned of this, he recanted his intention to withdraw and remained president. This confusion led to mutual distrust and accusations that poisoned the climate in the TG. The situation was exacerbated by Annie Besant, who brought with her Hindu orientation new tensions in the TG and gradually gained influence. These disputes were as Judge Case in the theosophical history. On April 28, 1895, the ASTG declared their withdrawal from the TG and elected Judge as its president for life. Only 26 boxes remained in the ASTG and thus in Olcott, 75 boxes went with Judge and founded the Theosophical Society in America ( = Theosophical Society in America ( TGinA ) ). This declared its independence as a completely self-contained and of the TG in Adyar.
Death
In the following months, almost 11 Judge could TGinA expand to around 100 lodges until he completely exhausted, in the age of 44 died in New York on 21 March 1896. Above all, Chagas disease, but also the stressful activity around the Theosophical Society, had taken their toll. His last words were: "Keep calm. Hold out. Go gently. " His body was burned on March 23 in a crematorium. The succession in the TGinA took over after a disputed election first Ernest T. Hargrove and finally Katherine Tingley.
Works (selection)
- The Ocean of Theosophy. Long, Kolbenmoor 2003, ISBN 3-930664-23-2.
- The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali, An Interpretation. Theosophical publishing house, Leipzig 1924.
- Echoes from the Orient, A general outline of theosophical teachings. Heller, Nuremberg 1906.
- Studies on the Bhagavad -gita. Publisher Esoteric Philosophy, Hanover, 1986, ISBN 3-924849-26-9.
- How to gain occult powers? Renatus -Verlag, Lorch 1926.
- Practical occultism. From the private letters of William Q. Judge. Theosophical University Press, Pasadena, 1951.