Sinclair M - Letter to Zhelikhovsky VP (1891-11-16)

Letter data

From
Author(s):	Sinclair M.
Place:	124, Avenue de Wagram, Paris
Date:	1891-11-16
Language(s):	English
To
Receiver(s):	Zhelikhovsky V. P.
Place:	Hotel Ironehet, Rue Ironehet, Paris
Date:
Mentioned
Person(s):	Blavatsky H. P.; Wachtmeister C.; Mead G. R. S.; Lamber J.
Place(s):
Other:
Concerns:
Summary and notes
Marie Sinclair is providing an account of communications with Madame Blavatsky between the latter’s death and her cremation.
Original
Location:	GARF, items: Ф. Р-5972. Оп. 1. Д. 79. Л. 4 Ф. Р-5972. Оп. 1. Д. 79. Л. 4об Ф. Р-5972. Оп. 1. Д. 79. Л. 5 Ф. Р-5972. Оп. 1. Д. 79. Л. 5об
Other languages

T

All letters

Letter

from:	Sinclair M.
to:	Zhelikhovsky V. P.
date:	1891-11-16

Holyrood
16th November 1891

Dear Madame

I beg of you to pardon my delay in replying to your letter. – which I find has no date – but I know I ought to have answered you sooner – but my difficulty is to know how to answer it. You ask me to relate to you the exact circumstances & the exact words used by your dear sister, the night she came to me in such seeming distress about the cremation – It is almost impossible for me to do so, as I kept no record – and what she said was chiefly limited to yes or no in reply to our questions – All we wrote down was this “This type of death (cremation) would destroy the personality – often indispensable for progression of the Spirit” – She had told us before she was not yet “released” & therefore dreaded the approaching cremation – You see therefore she was still in the flesh when she came to us – a fact which I have not been able to make any one understand. And Countess Wachtmeister, Mr Meade & others are so angry & annoyed with me for having written to them as I did, that the former wrote she would never forgive me for having evoked the spook of Madame Blavatsky – although she kindly added the thought I had done it more from ignorance than for amusement (!) Nothing would make them believe that her coming to me was spontaneous – & for a purpose, to try to avoid the threatened cremation – When I said to her she would do better to communicate with them directly – She said she could not do so – as they would not believe her – She having always taught that the spirit could not return, She called this “the great mistake I fell into” – & added “Now everything will have to be done to repair this error”. She seemed in such trouble at the idea of the approaching cremation that Madame Adam (Juliette Lamber) who was with me determined to alter the disposition she had made in her will – to be cremated. I remember one sentence she [Blavatsky] said, it was “I have spent my life searching for the Light, each one of the stars that I have consulted will send me their missionaries who will instruct me”. – And another “I am seeking enlightenment on the possession of myself – speak to me.” “I am surrounded by many kinds of spirits – I am looking for clarification” & “There is such a big difference between the Celestial light and that of Earth that the Earth must be erased in order to communicate”.

You see yourself dear Madame how little can be made of these detached sentences & therefore I thought it better in my article in L’Aurore not to particularise anything beyond the simple fact, and as that alone brought me into trouble with the members of the Society, perhaps it will be better to let the matter drop – however I leave it in your hands, do as you like about it –

I am very glad to hear you are a Christian Spiritualist – this has enabled me to write to you thus frankly – being an Esoteric Christian & a Spiritualist myself, I was debarred from being an active member in the Society which however has my best wishes, as always, for I consider it is doing an excellent work and preparing the arrival of the New Day which is already here – as you will see by the messages I am publishing in L’Aurore – you hold a prospect of coming to Paris, & perhaps to Nice this winter with your daughters – I need not say what great pleasure I shall be seeing you & improving our too short acquaintance – There are a very great many Russians at Nice this winter I hear. We shall go there the end of this month our address is Palais Tiranty Nice.

I shall look forward with great interest to read your accounting of the Life of your dear Sister & am dear Madame

Sincerely yrs

M Caithness
D[uchesse] Pomar

Original text in English with some French

Dear Madame

I beg of you to pardon my delay in replying to your letter. – which I find has no date – but I know I ought to have answered you sooner – but my difficulty is to know how to answer it. You ask me to relate to you the exact circumstances & the exact words used by your dear sister, the night she came to me in such seeming distress about the cremation – It is almost impossible for me to do so, as I kept no record – and what she said was chiefly limited to yes or no in reply to our questions – All we wrote down was this “Ce genre de mort (la cremation) détruirait la personalité of de l’Esprit” – She had told us before she was not yet “degagée” & therefore dreaded the approaching cremation – You see therefore she was still in the flesh when she came to us – a fact which I have not been able to make any one understand. And Countess Wachtmeister, Mr Meade & others are so angry & annoyed with me for having written to them as I did, that the former wrote she would never forgive me for having evoked the spook of Madame Blavatsky – although she kindly added the thought I had done it more from ignorance than for amusement (!) Nothing would make them believe that her coming to me was spontaneous – & for a purpose, to try to avoid the threatened cremation – When I said to her she would do better to communicate with them directly – She said she could not do so – as they would not believe her – She having always taught that the spirit could not return, She called this “la grande erreur où j’étais tombée” – & added “Maintenant il faudra tout “faire pour réparer cette erreur”. She seemed in such trouble at the idea of the approaching cremation that Madame Adam (Juliette Lamber) who was with me determined to alter the disposition she had made in her will – to be cremated. I remember one sentence she said, it was “J’ai passé ma vie a chercher la Lumière, chaque un des astres que j’ai consulté m’enverra ses missionnaires qui m’instuiront,” – And another “I seek Je cherche des eclaircissements sur la possession de moi même – parlez moi.” “Je suis environée de plusieurs sortes d’esprits – Je cherche des éclaircissement” & de “Il ya a une si grande différence entre la lumière Céleste et celle de la terre qu’il faut effacer la terre pour pouvoir communiques.”

You see yourself chère Madame how little can be made of these detached sentences & therefore I thought it better in my article in L’Aurore not to particularise anything beyond the simple fact, and as that alone brought me into trouble with the members of the Society, perhaps it will be better to let the matter drop – however I leave it in your hands, do as you like about it –

I am very glad to hear you are a Christian Spiritualist – this has enabled me to write to you thus frankly – being an Esoteric Christian & a Spiritualist myself, I was debarred from being an active member in the Society which however has my best wishes, as always, for I consider it is doing an excellent work and preparing the arrival of the New Day which is already here – as you will see by the messages I am publishing in L’Aurore – you hold a prospect of coming to Paris, & perhaps to Nice this winter with your daughters – I need not say what great pleasure I shall be seeing you & improving our too short acquaintance – There are a very great many Russians á Nice this winter I hear. We shall go there the end of this month our address is Palais Tiranty Nice.

I shall look forward with great interest to read your accounting of the Life of your dear Sister & am dear Madame

Sincerely yrs

M Caithness
D[uchesse] Pomar

Editor's note

Letterhead with seal, address of “124, Avenue de Wagram, Paris”, but overwritten with “Holyrood” address. This is not the letterhead featuring the family crest, but an occult design. The rooster and rising sun may represent her journal L’Aurore, or Dawn.

The ending of the letter continued from page 4 on the margins of page 3.

Previously the Countess had written of the same subject in less detail for an article in her journal L’Aurore. The punctuation is unusual. A dash is often used in place of a period. She also omits some diacritical marks in French words.