Occult socialism? - Dutch theosophists’ perspectives on social reform and social engagement between 1897 and 1930

This thesis focusses on the ideas of members of the Theosophical Society in the Netherlands about their role as theosophists in society, and the ways in which theosophical dogmas such as karma, reincarnation, and spiritual evolution related, according to Dutch theosophists, to social responsibility and social engagement. Central in this thesis is the following question: ‘to what extent did Dutch theosophists, between 1897 and 1930, view social engagement as an earthly means to actualize their occult beliefs?’ A commonly shared idea amongst Dutch theosophists was that their contemporary modern society was increasingly dominated by materialistic culture, which they associated with nihilism and hedonism. This ascendant materialism and lack of spirituality in the West was believed to be the primary cause for the many problems of modern Western society, and the only remedy for it was a spiritual revival. Dutch theosophists believed that they had a responsibility to be the agents that would facilitate this spiritual revival by means of the study of all religions to uncover the hidden wisdom they believed formed the fundament of all religion. They believed it was up to theosophists to actively promote spiritual knowledge in modern societies and actively engage in spiritual practice, which would, over time, change human nature and, through a process of spiritual evolution, lead to a better world. Influenced by new leadership and the emergence of a new generation of Dutch theosophists, debates steadily shifted between 1908 and 1914 towards the ways in which theosophical knowledge of spirituality could aid active social engagement and in solving social issues such as the miserable conditions of the working class. It was believed that developing an understanding of the cosmic laws of karma and reincarnation could aid all (theosophical and non-theosophical) social reformers, by, for example, proving that inequality was an inherent aspect of the universe, rather than the consequence of capitalism. During this shift towards practical implementations of theosophy, Dutch theosophists attempted to formulate spiritually inspired alternatives to Marxist theories used by materialistically orientated socialist reformers. Throughout the debates of Dutch theosophists regarding their role in society, however, a dilemmatic ambiguity surfaced time and again that proved to be a problematic, yet fundamental element of the theosophical discourse: the tension between individual responsibility and external aid in relation to achieving spiritual revival and enlightenment. The fundamental tension in the theosophical discourse about the relation between theosophy and social engagement was whether spiritual enlightenment and the related spiritual revival of society was achievable by individuals, or only reachable through the aid of external, supernatural agents. The failure to solve this theoretical puzzle can be said to have strongly contributed to the eventual downfall of the Theosophical Society at the close of the 1920s.