What is the essence of theosophy? It is the fact that man, being himself divine, can know the divinity whose life he shares. As an inevitable corollary to this supreme truth comes the fact of the brotherhood of man.
Annie BesantRead
I was a wife and mother, blameless in moral life, with a deep sense of duty and a proud self-respect; it was while I was this that doubt struck me, and while I was in the guarded circle of the home, with no dream of outside work or outside liberty, that I lost all faith in Christianity.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects a personal conflict between duty and belief.
Annie Besant expresses her inner struggle and transformation as a wife and mother who, despite fulfilling her societal roles with pride and moral integrity, experiences a profound crisis of faith in Christianity. This conflict arises even in the perceived safety of her home, suggesting that personal doubt and existential questions can penetrate even the most stable and traditional domestic settings.
Themes
DoubtFaithChristianityHomeDutySelf-RespectPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about personal beliefs during a family gathering.
More from Annie Besant
All quotes →No durable things are built on violent passion. Nature grows her plants in silence and in darkness, and only when they have become strong do they put their heads above the ground.
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Death consists, indeed, in a repeated process of unrobing, or unsheathing. The immortal part of man shakes off from itself, one after the other, its outer casings, and - as the snake from its skin, the butterfly from its chrysalis - emerges from one after another, passing into a higher state of consciousness.
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Let Indian history be set side by side with Europe history with what there is of the latter century by century and let us see whether India need blush at the comparison.
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My own life in India, since I came to it in 1893 to make it my home, has been devoted to one purpose, to give back to India her ancient freedom.
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Knowledge is essential to conquest; only according to our ignorance are we helpless. Thought creates character. Character can dominate conditions. Will creates circumstances and environment.
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