A.P. Sinnett (18 January 1840 - 26 June 1921) was an
authorAn author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created...
and
TheosophistTheosophy is a doctrine of religious philosophy and metaphysics. Theosophy holds that all religions are attempts by the "Spiritual Hierarchy" to help humanity in evolving to greater perfection, and that each religion therefore has a portion of the truth...
.
Sinnett's father died while he was young, by 1851 Sinnett is listed as a "Scholar - London University", living with his widowed mother Jane whose occupation is listed as "Periodical Literature", and his older sister Sophia age 22 who is a teacher. Jane's sister Sarah age 48 is also a teacher.
Sinnett married his wife Patience in 1870, probably in the London area.
A.P. Sinnett (18 January 1840 - 26 June 1921) was an
authorAn author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created...
and
TheosophistTheosophy is a doctrine of religious philosophy and metaphysics. Theosophy holds that all religions are attempts by the "Spiritual Hierarchy" to help humanity in evolving to greater perfection, and that each religion therefore has a portion of the truth...
.
Biography
Sinnett's father died while he was young, by 1851 Sinnett is listed as a "Scholar - London University", living with his widowed mother Jane whose occupation is listed as "Periodical Literature", and his older sister Sophia age 22 who is a teacher. Jane's sister Sarah age 48 is also a teacher.
Sinnett married his wife Patience in 1870, probably in the London area. He is listed in the
1871 England CensusThe United Kingdom has taken a census of its population every ten years since 1801, with the exception of 1941 . In addition to providing a wealth of interesting information about aspects of the make-up of the country, the results of the census plays an important part in the calculation of resource...
at age 31, as a Journalist, born in
MiddlesexMiddlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
. 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
AllahabadAllahabad Allahabad Allahabad , is a city in north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and administrative headquarters of Allahabad District. The ancient name of the city is Aggra (Sanskrit for "place of sacrifice") and is believed to be the spot where Brahma offered his first...
and remained there for six weeks..."
In 1880 Helena Blavatsky and
Henry Steel OlcottColonel Henry Steel Olcott was an American military officer, journalist, lawyer and the co-founder and first President of the Theosophical Society....
visited the Sinnetts at their summer-home in
SimlaShimla , originally called Simla, is the capital city of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of the British Raj in India. A popular tourist destination, Shimla is often referred to as the "Queen of Hills"...
. The
Mahatma lettersThe Mahatma Letters are letters that were written by the Theosophical Mahatmas to certain Theosophists, especially A. P. Sinnett and A. O. Hume. Letters by the Mahatmas were also written to Henry Steel Olcott, Helena Blavatsky, C. W. Leadbeater and others....
, which generated the controversy that later helped lead to the split of the
Theosophical SocietyThe Theosophical Society was an organization formed in 1875 to advance the spiritual principles and search for Truth known as Theosophy. Theosophy is an active belief system today, and through a process of schism has also given rise to many other mystical beliefs and organisations.-Formation:The...
, were mostly written to Sinnett or his wife, Patience.
By 1889, Sinnett was back in
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and asked
LeadbeaterC. W. Leadbeater , was an English clergyman, author, clairvoyant, and prominent early member of the Theosophical Society. -Early life:...
to come back to England to tutor his son Percy and
George ArundaleDr. George Sidney Arundale was a theosophist, freemason, president of the Theosophical Society Adyar and bishop of the Liberal Catholic Church....
. Leadbeater agreed and brought with him one of his pupils
JinarajadasaCuruppumullage Jinarajadasa Curuppumullage Jinarajadasa Curuppumullage Jinarajadasa (* 16 December 1875 in Sri Lanka; † 18 June 1953 (USA) was a freemason, theosophist and president of the Theosophical Society Adyar....
.
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.
Works
- The Occult World, London 1881
- Esoteric Buddhism, London 1883
- Karma: A Novel, London: Chapman & Hall. 1885.
- The rationale of mesmerism, Boston 1892
- The Growth Of The Soul, 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, London 1915
- Unseen Aspects of the War; Two articles by A[lfred] P[ercy] Sinnett, London 1916
- The early days of theosophy in Europa, London 1922
Literature
- Autobiography of Alfred Percy Sinnett, Theosophical History Centre Publications, London 1986 ISBN 0-948753-02-1
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
The Mahatma Letters to A.P. Sinnett is a book published in 1923 by A. Trevor Barker. According to Theosophical teachings, the letters were written between 1880 and 1884 by Kuthumi and Morya to A.P. Sinnett. The letters were previously quoted in several theosophical books The Mahatma Letters to...
London 1926 (ISBN 1-55700-086-7)
External links