Alfred Percy Sinnett (18 January 1840 – 26 June 1921) was an English author and

theosophist Theosophy is a religious movement established in the United States in the late 19th century. Founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and based largely on her writings, it draws heavily from both older European philosophies such as Neo ...

Biography

Sinnett was born in London. His father died while he was young, as in 1851 Sinnett was listed as a "Scholar – London University", living with his mother Jane Sinnett, an author and translator, who is listed as a widow and whose occupation is listed as "Periodical Literature"; his older sister Sophia, age 22, was a teacher. Jane's sister Sarah, age 48, was also a teacher. In 1870 Sinnett married his wife Patience, probably in the London area. He is listed in the 1871 England Census at age 31, as a Journalist, born in

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

. His wife Patience is 27, and her mother Clarissa Edenson a "Landowner", is living with them.By 1879, Sinnett had moved to India where he was "... the Editor of ''The Pioneer'', the leading English Daily of India..." He relates in his book, '' The Occult World'' that: "...on the first occasion of my making Madame Blavatsky's acquaintance she became a guest at my home at

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

and remained there for six weeks..." In 1880

Helena Blavatsky Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian-born Mysticism, mystic and writer who emigrated to the United States where she co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875. She gained an internat ...

and Henry Steel Olcott visited the Sinnetts at their summer home in

Simla Shimla, also known as Simla (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Himachal Pradesh, the official name until 1972), is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summe ...

. The '' Mahatma Letters'', which generated the controversy that later helped lead to the split of the

Theosophical Society The Theosophical Society is the organizational body of Theosophy, an esoteric new religious movement. It was founded in New York City, U.S.A. in 1875. Among its founders were Helena Blavatsky, a Russian mystic and the principal thinker of the ...

were mostly written to Sinnett or his wife Patience. The letters started at this time when Sinnett asked Blavatsky whether if he wrote a letter to her Mahatmas, she could arrange to have it delivered. By 1884 Sinnett was back in England, where that year Constance Wachtmeister states that she met Blavatsky at the home of the Sinnetts in London. Sinnett asked

Charles Webster Leadbeater Charles Webster Leadbeater (; 16 February 1854 – 1 March 1934) was a member of the Theosophical Society, Co-Freemasonry, an author on occult subjects, and the co-initiator, with J. I. Wedgwood, of the Liberal Catholic Church. Orig ...

to come back to England to tutor his son Percy and George Arundale. Leadbeater agreed and brought with him one of his pupils

Curuppumullage Jinarajadasa Curuppumullage Jinarajadasa (16 December 1875, British Ceylon – 18 June 1953, United States) was a Ceylonese author, occultist, freemason and Theosophy (Blavatskian), theosophist. The fourth president of the Theosophical Society, Jinarajadasa ...

. Using "astral clairvoyance" Leadbeater assisted William Scott-Elliot to write his book ''The Story of Atlantis'', for which Sinnett wrote the preface. Sinnett was later president of the London Lodge of the Society. By 1901 Sinnett is listed as an author. His son Percy is also listed as an author and born in India.1901 England Census

Notes

Works

''The Occult World''
(London: Trubner and Company, 1881)
''Esoteric Buddhism''
(London: Trubner and Company, 1883). Describes the concept of Root race, later adopted by Madame Blavatsky.
''Karma: A Novel''
(London: Chapman & Hall, 1885)

(1886) * ttps://archive.org/details/rationalemesmer00sinngoog ''The Rationale of Mesmerism''(Boston, Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1892)
''The Growth of the Soul''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London and Benares, 1896, 1905)]
''Occult Essays''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London and Benares, 1905)
''Married by Degrees; A Play in 3 Acts''
(London, 1911)
''In the Next World: Actual Narratives of Personal Experiences by Some Who Have Passed On''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1914)
''The Spiritual Powers and the War''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1915)
''Unseen Aspects of the War: Two Articles by A.P. Sinnett''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1916)
''Collected fruits of occult teaching''
(Philadelphia, 1920)
''Super-Physical Science''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1919)
''Tennyson an Occultist, As His Writings Prove''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1920)
''The Early Days of Theosophy in Europe''
(Theosophical Publishing Society, London, 1922) (posthumous)

Literature

* ''Autobiography of Alfred Percy Sinnett'', Theosophical History Centre Publications, London 1986

Letters

* Helena P. Blavatsky: ''The letters of H. P. Blavatsky to A. P. Sinnett and other miscellaneous letters'', London 1925 *A. Trevor Barker. The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett London 1926 ()

External links

* *
The Mahatma Letters to Sinnett

''Esoteric Buddhism'' by A.P. Sinnett

Book Review of ''Karma''

Occult Investigations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sinnett, Alfred Percy 1840 births 1921 deaths British male writers British non-fiction writers English Theosophists Helena Blavatsky biographers British male non-fiction writers Writers from London Writers from British India British people in colonial India