Editing Helena Blavatsky (section)

=== World travels: 1849–1869 ===

[[File:Picture of H.P.Blavatsky.jpg|thumb|Blavatsky's drawing of a boat scene, produced in England in 1851{{sfn|Cranston|1993|p=46}}]]

At age 17, she agreed to marry Nikifor Vladimirovich Blavatsky, a man in his forties who worked as Vice Governor of [[Erivan Governorate|Erivan Province]]. Her reasons for doing so were unclear, although she later claimed that she was attracted by his belief in magic.{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1pp=52–54|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2pp=35–36|3a1=Washington|3y=1993|3p=30|4a1=Goodrick-Clarke|4y=2004|4p=3|5a1=Lachman|5y=2012|5pp=29–30|6a1=Сенкевич|6y=2010|6p=124}} Although she tried to back out shortly before the wedding ceremony, the marriage took place on 7 July 1849.{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1p=55|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2p=36|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=32|4a1=Сенкевич|4y=2010|4p=126}} Moving with him to the [[Sardar Palace]], she made repeated unsuccessful attempts to escape and return to her family in Tiflis, to which he eventually relented.{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1pp=56–57|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2pp=36–37|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=32}} The family sent her, accompanied by a servant and maid, to Odessa to meet her father, who planned to return to Saint Petersburg with her. The escorts accompanied her to [[Poti]] and then [[Kerch]], intending to continue with her to Odessa. Blavatsky claimed that, fleeing her escorts and bribing the captain of the ship that had taken her to Kerch, she reached [[Constantinople]].{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1pp=61–62|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2pp=37–38|3a1=Washington|3y=1993|3p=31|4a1=Lachman|4y=2012|4p=33}} This marked the start of nine years spent traveling the world, possibly financed by her father.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|pp=33–34}}

She did not keep a diary at the time, and was not accompanied by relatives who could verify her activities.{{sfn|Cranston|1993|p=42}} Thus, historian of esotericism [[Nicholas Goodrick-Clarke]] noted that public knowledge of these travels rests upon "her own largely uncorroborated accounts", which are marred by being "occasionally conflicting in their chronology".{{sfn|Goodrick-Clarke|2004|p=3}} For religious studies scholar Bruce F. Campbell, there was "no reliable account" for the next 25 years of her life.{{sfn|Campbell|1980|p=4}} According to biographer Peter Washington, at this point "myth and reality begin to merge seamlessly in Blavatsky's biography".{{sfn|Washington|1993|pp=30–31}}

She later claimed that in Constantinople she developed a friendship with a Hungarian opera singer named Agardi Metrovitch, whom she first encountered when saving him from being murdered.{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1pp=70–71|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2pp=36–37|3a1=Сенкевич|3y=2010|3p=141}} It was also in Constantinople that she met the Countess Sofia Kiselyova, who she would accompany on a tour of Egypt, Greece, and Eastern Europe.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|p=34}} In [[Cairo]], she met the American art student Albert Rawson, who later wrote extensively about the Middle East,{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1p=64|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2p=43|3a1=Goodrick-Clarke|3y=2004|3pp=3–4|4a1=Lachman|4y=2012|4pp=38–40}} and together they allegedly visited a Coptic magician, Paulos Metamon.{{sfnm|1a1=Goodrick-Clarke|1y=2004|1p=4|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=177|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3pp=41–42}} In 1851, she proceeded to Paris, where she encountered the mesmerist, [[Victor Michal]], who impressed her.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|pp=42–43}} From there, she visited England, and would claim that it was here that she met the "mysterious Indian" who had appeared in her childhood visions, a [[Hinduism|Hindu]] whom she referred to as the Master [[Morya (Theosophy)|Morya]]. While she provided various conflicting accounts of how they met, locating it in both London and [[Ramsgate]] according to separate stories, she maintained that he claimed that he had a special mission for her, and that she must travel to [[Tibet]].{{sfnm|1a1=Kuhn|1y=1992|1p=47|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2pp=45–46|3a1=Kalnitsky|3y=2003|3p=197|4a1=Goodrick-Clarke|4y=2004|4p=4|5a1=Lachman|5y=2012|5pp=43–44|6a1=Сенкевич|6y=2010|6p=163}}

[[File:Blavatsky.007.jpg|thumb|150px|left|Helena Blavatsky, {{circa|1850}}]]

She made her way to Asia via the Americas, heading to Canada in autumn 1851. Inspired by the novels of [[James Fenimore Cooper]], she sought out the Native American communities of [[Quebec]] in the hope of meeting their [[magico-religious]] specialists, but was instead robbed, later attributing these Natives' behavior to the corrupting influence of Christian missionaries.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=48|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=177|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3pp=44–45}} She then headed south, visiting [[New Orleans]], Texas, Mexico, and the Andes, before transport via ship from the [[West Indies]] to [[Ceylon]] and then [[Bombay]].{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=49|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=177|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=45}} She spent two years in India, allegedly following the instructions found in letters that Morya had sent to her.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|pp=45–46}} She attempted to enter Tibet, but was prevented from doing so by the British colonial administration.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=50|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=177|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=46}}

She later claimed that she then headed back to Europe by ship, surviving a shipwreck near to the [[Cape of Good Hope]] before arriving in England in 1854, where she faced hostility as a Russian citizen due to the ongoing [[Crimean War]] between Britain and Russia.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1pp=51–52|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2p=46}} It was here, she claimed, that she worked as a concert musician for the [[Royal Philharmonic Society]].{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=52|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2p=46}} Sailing to the U.S., she visited New York City, where she met up with Rawson, before touring Chicago, [[Salt Lake City]], and San Francisco, and then sailing back to India via Japan.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1pp=52–54|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=177|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=46}} There, she spent time in [[Kashmir]], [[Ladakh]], and [[Burma]], before making a second attempt to enter Tibet.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|p=47}} She claimed that this time she was successful, entering Tibet in 1856 through Kashmir, accompanied by a Tartar shaman who was attempting to reach Siberia and who thought that as a Russian citizen, Blavatsky would be able to aid him in doing so.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1pp=57–58|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=177|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3pp=60–61}} According to this account, they reached [[Leh]] before becoming lost, eventually joining a traveling Tartar group before she headed back to India.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|pp=61–62}} She returned to Europe via [[Madras]] and [[Java]].{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=60|2a1=Santucci|2y=2006|2p=178|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=47}}

After spending time in France and Germany, in 1858 she returned to her family, then based in [[Pskov]].{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1pp=75–76|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2p=63|3a1=Goodrick-Clarke|3y=2004|3p=4|4a1=Lachman|4y=2012|4p=47}} She later claimed that there she began to exhibit further paranormal abilities, with rapping and creaking accompanying her around the house and furniture moving of its own volition.{{sfnm|1a1=Campbell|1y=1980|1pp=4–5|2a1=Meade|2y=1980|2pp=76–78|3a1=Cranston|3y=1993|3pp=65–69|4a1=Goodrick-Clarke|4y=2004|4p=4|5a1=Lachman|5y=2012|5pp=48–49}} In 1860, she and her sister visited their maternal grandmother in Tiflis. It was there that she met up with Metrovitch, and where she reconciled with Nikifor in 1862.{{sfnm|1a1=Kuhn|1y=1992|1pp=67–77|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|1p=75|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3p=50}} Together they adopted a child named Yuri, who would die aged five in 1867, when he was buried under Metrovitch's surname.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|pp=37–38, 50}}
In 1864, while riding in [[Mingrelia]], Blavatsky fell from her horse and was in a coma for several months with a spinal fracture. Recovering in Tiflis, she claimed that upon awaking she gained full control of her paranormal abilities.{{sfnm|1a1=Goodrick-Clarke|1y=2004|1p=4|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2pp=50–51}}{{sfn|Kuhn|1992|p=68}} She then proceeded to Italy, Transylvania, and Serbia, possibly studying the [[Cabalah]] with a rabbi at this point.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|p=51}} In 1867, she proceeded to the Balkans, Hungary, and then Italy, where she spent time in Venice, Florence, and Mentana, claiming that in the latter she had been injured fighting for [[Giuseppe Garibaldi]] at the [[Battle of Mentana]].{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1p=91|2a1=Cranston|2y=1993|2pp=78–79|3a1=Goodrick-Clarke|3y=2004|3p=4|4a1=Lachman|4y=2012|4pp=51–52}}

==== Tibet ====

[[File:Tashilhunpo Monastery, Shigatse.JPG|thumb|upright=1.2|Tashilhunpo Monastery, Shigatse, the place that Blavatsky claimed held the Senzar texts she translated]]

She claimed to have then received a message from Morya to travel to Constantinople, where he met her, and together they traveled overland to Tibet, going through Turkey, Persia, Afghanistan, and then into India, entering Tibet via Kashmir.{{sfnm|1a1=Goodrick-Clarke|1y=2004|1p=4|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2p=63}} There, they allegedly stayed in the home of Morya's friend and colleague, Master [[Koot Hoomi]], which was near to [[Tashilhunpo Monastery]], [[Shigatse]]. According to Blavatsky, both Morya and Koot Hoomi were Kashmiris of Punjabi origin, and it was at his home that Koot Hoomi taught students of the [[Gelugpa]] sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Koot Hoomi was described as having spent time in London and [[Leipzig]], being fluent in both English and French, and like Morya was a vegetarian.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1pp=92–83|2a1=Goodrick-Clarke|2y=2004|2pp=4–5|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3pp=64–65}}

She claimed that in Tibet, she was taught an ancient, unknown language known as [[Senzar language|Senzar]], and translated a number of ancient texts written in this language that were preserved by the monks of a monastery; she stated that she was, however, not permitted entry into the monastery itself.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=100|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2pp=68–69}} She also claimed that while in Tibet, Morya and Koot Hoomi helped her develop and control her psychic powers. Among the abilities that she ascribed to these "Masters" were [[clairvoyance]], [[clairaudience]], [[telepathy]], and the ability to control another's consciousness, to dematerialize and rematerialize physical objects, and to project their astral bodies, thus giving the appearance of being in two places at once.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|pp=71–72}} She claimed to have remained on this spiritual retreat from late 1868 until late 1870.{{sfn|Goodrick-Clarke|2004|p=5}} Blavatsky never claimed in print to have visited [[Lhasa]], although this is a claim that would be made for her in various later sources, including the account provided by her sister.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=97|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2p=67}}

Many critics and biographers have expressed doubt about the veracity of Blavatsky's claims regarding her visits to Tibet, which rely entirely on her own claims, lacking any credible independent testimony.{{sfnm|1a1=Meade|1y=1980|1pp=69–70|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2p=57}} It has been highlighted that during the nineteenth century, [[History of Tibet#European influences in Tibet|Tibet was closed to Europeans]], and visitors faced the perils of bandits and a harsh terrain; the latter would have been even more problematic if Blavatsky had been as stout and unathletic as she would be in later life.{{sfnm|1a1=Washington|1y=1993|1p=33|2a1=Goodrick-Clarke|2y=2004|2p=5|3a1=Lachman|3y=2012|3pp=53–54}} However, as several biographers have noted, traders and pilgrims from neighboring lands were able to access Tibet freely, suggesting the possibility that she would have been allowed to enter accompanied by Morya, particularly if she had been mistaken for an Asian.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=82|2a1=Lachman|2y=2012|2p=64}} Blavatsky's eyewitness account of Shigatse was unprecedented in the West,{{sfn|Goodrick-Clarke|2004|p=5}} and one scholar of Buddhism, [[D. T. Suzuki]], suggested that she later exhibited an advanced knowledge of [[Mahayana Buddhism]] consistent with her having studied in a Tibetan monastery.{{sfnm|1a1=Cranston|1y=1993|1p=84|2a1=Goodrick-Clarke|2y=2004|2p=5}} Lachman noted that had Blavatsky spent time in Tibet, then she would be "one of the greatest travelers of the nineteenth century",{{sfn|Lachman|2012|p=53}} although he added – "in all honesty I do not know" if Blavatsky spent time in Tibet or not.{{sfn|Lachman|2012|p=75}} Biographer [[Marion Meade]] commented on Blavatsky's tales of Tibet and various other adventures by stating that "hardly a word of this appears to be true".{{sfn|Meade|1980|p=69}}