1. What’s your name, where are you from and how long have you been a member of the TS?
My name is Robert Moore. I live in Santa Barbara, CA. After finding the United Lodge of Theosophists here in Santa Barbara I decided to stay here, so I have been a member of ULT for about 45 years.
2. Are you active in your Lodge/Section and if so, what do you do?
If you have been an active student of Theosophy in the ULT, there comes a time when you may be asked to give presentations at the Sunday meetings. That voluntary obligation involves giving a talk at least once each season of the year. Along with many other students I try to fulfill this obligation.
3. How did you first learn about Theosophy or come in contact with the Society?
I was a student at the University of California, Santa Barbara during the era of Vietnam protests. The campus was full of riot squad police and the atmosphere was tense and chaotic. The most level headed and calm students turned out to be Theosophists. One of them invited me to a meeting. The meetings became most meaningful after I studied William Q. Judges’ book The Ocean of Theosophy.
4. What does Theosophy mean to you?
Theosophy, for me, means Divine Truth and hope for Humanity. It is the perennial philosophy that surfaces here and there throughout recorded history, and it ever refreshes the aspiring spirit of mankind.
5. What is your favourite Theosophical book and why?
My favorite book is The Secret Doctrine by H.P. Blavatsky. It is a boundless source of wisdom and an antidote to the solidification of thought and any kind of dogma.
6. What in your opinion is the biggest challenge the TS is facing at the moment?
The biggest challenge to Theosophy is to establish a nucleus of Universal Brotherhood. That is the challenge given to us by the Mahatmas. So far we have failed ignominiously.
7. Is there anything you would wish for the future of the Theosophical Movement?
My wish for the Theosophical Movement is that people who are interested in it find their focus and practice in the universal ethics of Theosophy, the ethics which are found in every religion, and which Theosophists find in The Voice of the Silence,Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the Gita and Dhammapada.
From the editor:
Opinions and ideas expressed in the mini-interviews are exclusively of those who are being interviewed. They don’t necessarily represent the ideas and opinions of the compilers of Theosophy Forward. The responses of the interviewees are not edited for content. Some contributors give short answers to the questions while others touch upon the subject more elaborately.