[15]

- Of Biographical Interest -

(A series of articles appearing in Round Robin and Flying Roll, over the initials F.G.H., has caused many inquiries as to the author's identity. In reply to these F.G.H. has sent us the following paragraphs. The use of initials only, or a pseudonym, and the withholding of the address from public prints is common practise among occultists of advanced grades, and is based on highly practical reasons. F.G.H. may be reached at any time through the RR Editor.)

- - - - - -

My friend the RR Editor has asked me to write a few words about myself. But while such interest is flattering, it is a distasteful task, because to myself I am not interesting.

Many of my friends do me the honor of calling me an Adept - which I think is a misleading title, creating the picture of one who is adept at the manipulation of magic powers, which is at best a very ticklish practise. But I am sure I am an initiate of sorts, a pupil of the Collegium of Masters, and, of course, their servant. As such I naturally have certain knowledge and powers which are regarded as magical and mystical by the uninitiate. But this knowledge itself is the surest antidote against pride and arrogance. One is able to see such greatness that even the most advanced human being becomes a pigmy.

How does it feel to be an initiate? First, there is a feeling of tremendous loneliness, because the usual human interests become of microscopic importance. Even as a child one is regarded as strange and queer because one is not "smart." This makes life a bit hard, unless one incarnates among Initiates, a very rare occurrence indeed. But during adolescence one begins to encounter other initiates, who lead one in the right direction, into schools of esoteric knowledge, and the like. So, in time one finds out what one is and what it is all about. With the integration of Personality and Person one comes to the point where one takes up the work left in the last incarnation.

It is of course clear that initiation of any kind cannot be attained in one life, and often needs the work of many incarnations. It should also be understood that the work of any initiate is at least nine-tenths on higher planes. It is also a matter of economy to use on any plane only as much of himself as is needed for the work at hand. Hence, on the physical plane an initiate is seldom "all there". (I have known some who to the uninitiate would appear singularly stupid and uninteresting.) Hence a true initiate lacks glamour of any kind.

One lives, on the surface, the ordinary kind of human life - just as a highly trained German Shepherd leads a normal dog's life, but has to be more circumspect, on account of his power, than the pint-sized pet which barks and snaps at everything. - One major difference is the life between incarnations. The non-initiate can take a long rest in the different Summerlands, but the initiate has to reincarnate speedily, since there are so few and so many are needed - especially at this time of catastrophe. So, after nearly sixty years on three continents, many years of labor are still ahead.

F.G.H.

[16]

Letter from
Edgerton Sykes
(London)

". . . There has been a lot in the U.S. press about fragments of an (or 'the') Ark discovered on a glacier in N.W. Persia near Mt. Ararat - 39-45' N. by 44-20' E., which puts it just inside the Persian border. When I was in Persia this area was full of Russians and I could not get anywhere near there. Apart from a reference in Donnelly all I can trace here are:

1859 .. .. .. seen by M. Parmot (French)
1883 .. .. .. Turkish surveyors
1899 .. .. .. Nestorian priest
1916 .. .. .. V. Roskzovitsky (Russian airmen)
1939 .. .. .. Mentioned by F. Cohan in Yesterdays in Persia
and Kurdistan. NY. (No copy in England)

General: Reports of the existence of the Koh-i-nur (Hill of Noah)
(The similarity with the famous jewel is peculiar).

If anyone has information about this will they get in touch with me, at 9 Markham Square, London, S.W. 7 - or with H.S. Belleamy, thru Faber & Faber Ltd., 24 Russell Square, London, W.C. 1 - an expert photographer and I will go there and have a look . . ."

(Mr Sykes, as most of our readers know, is occupied with a definitive edition of Donnelly's Atlantis, to be published in this country.)

In Round Robin I-6, for July 1945, appeared a half-page summary of an article appearing in the California Pension Advocate of May, 1945, with subsequent "explanations" in the June issue. This article was a condensation of one which appeared in Life Digest, Melbourne, and in the March number of Magazine Digest, Montreal. The story goes back to about March 1917, when the two Russian airmen flew over Ararat and reported a huge ship-like construction on top of it. "The Russian Government" (the RR article says) "sent soldiers to explore it . . they found an old ship, big as a battleship, long as a city block, hundreds of small rooms, immense timbers. All of course frozen hard for ten months of the year; no wonder it was still there (whatever IT was). Measurements, photographs, etc., were sent to the Czar. Came the revolution of March 1917 --- and the rest is silence. All this is said (by the Advocate account) to be the story of Roscovitsky, a White Russian who escaped thru Armenia, came to America, finally wrote up the story which appeared in Melbourne, Montreal, then in Bible News Flashes (Minneapolis), and the Advocate . . . Roscovitsky thinks the Bolsheviki destroyed the report, in their anti-religious crusade.

The RR Editor printed this, explaining that like Huxley, he was "too sceptical to disbelieve anything that seems improbable", but was mildly derided for doing so. It is not without satisfaction that we now note the four (or five) additional references for this alleged "Ark", given by Mr Sykes, who is reputed to be of most careful and critical temperament . . . The existence of any kind of large ship on the heights of Mt. Ararat, or nearby Noachien or otherwise, would be an astonishing find. If any of our readers can be of help in this matter, we bespeak their active interest. Write to Mr Sykes at once.

[17]

Dero-Queero Business

We refer elsewhere to the Roger Graham article in June Amazing Stories (now on sale), and wish to draw attention to a second important article by him in the same issue, on the Unification of Mass Concepts. Following this is a 5-page article by RR friend Vincent Gaddis, "Visitors from the Void", a compilation of most extraordinary data. We recommend it especially to Tiffany Thayer, Editor of Doubt, who has consistently jeered at the "Kareeta" story, which was less sensational and better substantiated than most of the formidable data here assembled. The reason: T.T. got the notion there was something "occult" mixed up with the K story, and promptly began to scatter foam-flecks. We also recommend it to F.G.H., who was, is, and we hope continues to be a friend of RR (in spite of T.T.'s pious hope to the contrary).

In the next issue of RR we hope to comment again on the "Shaver Mystery", or dero-tero business, which is still going strong among the A.S. group of intelligentsia. RR has deplored the approach to this topic, via a sensational scientifiction magazine - but has supported and NOT denied the existence of the underground peoples, nor minimized the importance and real danger of such investigations. Our criticism, however, brought down severe reproof from the A.S. Editor. We feel that this dissension is the result of a misunderstanding. All interested and intelligent persons want all the data obtainable, even the alleged and unprovable data. RR stands for a fully ecclectic approach, and Mr. Ray Palmer is much too intelligent a man to advocate any other. Those who read his paragraph on page 176 of the June A.S. issue (current) beginning "we cannot fully explain the research we have gone into, in the matter of spiritualism" will find that his attitude as bottom is very reasonable, tho still 'conditioned' by the supposed demands of his public. RR will reprint the substance of the Dero article from Flying Roll Alpha I, and add some comment on the present complexities of this truly serious affair.

* * * * * * *

There are eleven great "living" religions and several smaller religions on earth today. The eleven are:-

(1)	Hinduism,	over	240,000,000	followers
(2)	Zoroastrianism		100,000	"
(3)	Judaism		(Hebrews)
(4)	Taoism	"	41,000,000	"
(5)	Confucianism	"	250,000,000	"
(6)	Jainism	"	1,250,000	"
(7)	Buddhism	"	150,000,000	"
(8)	Christianity	"	585,000,000	"
(9)	Mohammedanism	"	221,000,000	"
(10)	Shinto		(Japanese)
(11)	Sikhism	"	4,000,000	"

Three are declining --- Zoroastrianism, Jainism and Shinto.

Four show neither gain nor loss --- Taoism, Buddhism, Judaism and Sikhism.

Four are maintaining their growth --- Hinduism, Confucianism, Christianity and Mohammedanism.

(The Sacred Writings of the World's Great Religions,
S.E. Frost, Jr., B.D., Ph.D., 1943)

[18]

Memorandum
for the
Record

"It is said that for a space ship or a projectile to leave the sphere of the earth's attraction, it would have to attain a speed of about 3 miles per second - and that it would have to be of great weight and size to carry the fuel necessary for this. My theory is that centrifugal motion (like a gyro or top) renders the object weightless or causes it to defy gravity. How about having horizontal jets to spin the projectile or ship until it defies gravity, and then turn the vertical lift rockets loose? In this way we could lessen the speed required for escape velocity, and in turn decrease the load and size of the projectile. (Will Round Robin print this for the record?)"    David D. Dagmar.

Brother of
the Third
Degree

Fr. Jon Sonall calls attention to this book by Will Garver, published in 1894, Purdy Pub. Co., Chicago. It contains elements of interest concerning occult powers and operations, and particularly concerning telepathy. Our Fr. states that he personally experienced many of these facts, before knowing about the book, and would like to hear from anyone having information about the book and its author.

In this connection, RR Editor comments, that the Tibetan trance control Lo Sun Yat (Mark P. seances, San Diego) insists that telepathic transmission takes place in two ways. Symbols and images may be transmitted by the unaided power of the sender, but "vocal thinking" - words that do not carry images - is "transmitted only by the help of messenger spirits." These transmit by an extension of awareness, not travelling thru space, and hence at the speed of thought. This agrees in part with the spiritualist notion that discarnate beings have some share in telepathic phenomena.

When the present writer reminded Lo Sun Yat that one could form an image of a word, letter by letter, the latter craftily replied that the word could indeed be transmitted that way, but since words are themselves symbols, and are usually accompanied by images of some kind, it was simpler to send the image itself, e.g., the mental picture of a cat rather than the images of the letters C A T.

Round Robin is in receipt of an interesting article on telepathy, by Jon Sonall, which will appear in a later issue.

B. of L.
Instruction

A recent issue of RR reported telepathic experiments between the medium Mark Probert and his brother, in which details of the surroundings were received perfectly, while the idea concentrated upon was not transmitted at all. The Dutch spiritualist paper Bladen took interested note of this, and also RR friend B. F. Greenlee now sends us a relevant extract from the teachings of the Brotherhood of Light. According to this:

"The brain does not broadcast a thought which is concentrated upon; but an idea held just on the rim of consciousness is forced down into the sympathetic nervous system which is a powerful broadcaster. The sender should relax and hold the idea just faintly in mind. Mind impulses take off from the solar plexus or the region just back of the physical heart. These are also the points of departure in extension of awareness. To extend consciousness, relax, and drop the level of consciousness from the base of the nose to the back of the heart, and give a little push..."

[19]

Oahspe, Charles
Fort, and
space ships.

. . . "At the end of God's Book of Ben are several pages of comment which would do justice to Charles Fort and the Book of Cosmogony would have delighted him. I have tried to find evidence that Fort was familiar with Oahspe, but have come to the conclusion that he never read it . . . Re the "Kareeta": Oahspe mentions space ships under a variety of names: Abattos, Arrow-Boat, Adavaysit, Airavagra, Avalenza, etc. See Book of Osiris, Son of Jehovih, Ch.1, para. 5 for references to what may have been the nature of Kareeta."

(From letter to RR, by B.F. Greenlee)

Information
wanted

"Mr Egerton Sykes (biographer of Ignatius Donnelly) wants two further parcels of information: (1) History and activities of Pasadena Atlantis Club; (2) Titles of all books published in the United States in the last five years or more on Atlantis, in any category, occult or otherwise."

(Jon Sonall. Send such info. to RR.)

"Ignatius Donnelly evidently was an Initiate, as evidenced by the knowledge shown in his Atlantis and Ragnarok."    (writes F.G.H.)

Wanted:

Philosophy of Mysterious Agents .. etc., 330 p.p., by E.C. Rogers: works of P.P. Quimby, or bearing on his technique. Address Dr. Roy S. Neal, 1st. Nat'l Bank Bldg.; Osawatomie, Kansas.

"F.E.W."

(care of Mrs Olive Runyon, 458 No. Townsend Ave, Los Angeles 53, Calif.) would like to get in touch with L.A. residents interested in subjects dealt with by Round Robin -- psychic research in any phase.

Walter X. Osborn:

"In answer to the issue raised by Dr. Fodor, I do not think you should refuse to publish articles of the prediction type . . . your magazine goes to a select group of people who are mentally capable of judging for themselves." (W.X.O. writes from Santa Cruz. Zambales. P.I.)

The "Betty
Books", by
S.E. White

These four books, or any of them, are wanted second-hand. Address by J. Croisset van Uchelen, M.D., N.D., 2516 No. Beachwood Drive, Hollywood, 28, Calif. State condition and price.

Headless Valley

This alleged mystery, commented on by Light and played up by various newspapers, seems to have evaporated completely - no lack of heads in the valley, but merely of brains in the heads of people writing about it. Mrs Went Goodridge (1008 Franklin St., Red Bluff, Calif.) sends us final clips on the matter.

Atomic Bombs

". . . for reasons of national security" the Atomic Energy Commission has subordinated the peaceful uses of atomic energy to the perfecting of atomic weapons. "An Australian scientist said recently that bombs now being produced were 600 times more powerful than the one used on Nagasaki - each being [23] equivalent to more than 12 million tons of TNT." (UP dispatch, Washington, Jan 31, '47). Columnist William Stidger, and also Bob Considine in Denver Post of Jan. 16, have lengthy and alarming comment on this same topic. Vincent Gaddis sends the clips covering this.

Re this diabolical perversion of the power of Nature, we venture a comment calculated to cause smiles and head-tapping among commonsensible folk, and among scientists to whom X plus Y is the whole of Nature. One correspondent, just one, at Bikini, beheld in the appalling pillar of that explosion something like the presence of a living and malignant thing, no invention of affrighted fancy. Friends of this writer, watching the moving picture of this same event, were startled by the same feeling. So then, your editor went to look for himself, and saw the great column alive with demoniac faces and twisting shapes. This fantasy, mentioned casually to Professor X., set that learned man all aquiver with amusement. But it does not amuse certain equally learned occultists of our acquaintance, who have seen the unthinkable spirits of Nature in their pleasure and their wrath, and have their own thought as to what living malignancies may yet be released from the Abyss, thru mania abuse of the high potencies of his knowledge.

Field-Marshall
JAN CHRISTIAN
SMUTS - and
others:

"If war should return, there will be no more history."

"We have but four or five years left - establish a world government or perish in a war of the atom." (Raymond Gram Swing)

"The Stone Age may return on the gleaming wings of Science. Beware, I say: time may be short." (Winston Churchill)

"It is true that one raid on United States cities might kill forty million Americans." (J.R. Oppenheimer, scientist)

"The world now faces unimaginable danger . . . It can be made a deed planet like the moon or Mars, or a ball of nuclear flame like the sun". (Dr. Chas. Clayton Morrison, in Christian Century).

"The end of everything we call life is close at hand and cannot be evaded. There is no way out or round or through this impasse. It is the end . . . Our world is like a convoy lost in darkness." (H.G. Wells)

(Round Robin could fill its pages with similar quotations. From time to time we repeat some of them, not to cause needless alarm, but because if constructive effort is at all possible, it will come only from those who remember, who are awake, and who are not resigned.)

* * * * *

[24]

Healing and
Occult Science

A very great subject may be discussed sketchily by either an ignoramus or a scholar, but a very modest critical acumen can distinguish between the results. Breadth of knowledge gives sureness of touch, right selection of material, accurate allusiveness, the values and effects of perspective in a way which cannot be counterfeited. Dr. J. Croiset van Uchelen's book under the quoted title, is a case in point. There are only 126 pages (including a bibliography of some 50 titles) but it is the best informed and most judicious summary this reviewer has seen. There are 10 pages on Ancient and Modern Science, about as much on occult anatomy, 15 pages on Man's Vehicles, followed by Light and Color in Healing, Healing Systems, Healing with Herbs, Ancient Chinese Methods, Magnetic, Mental and Faith Healing (2 chapters) and a carefully selected reference list. The writing is at times highly condensed, but where Dr. van Uchelen puts a book or a system into a paragraph, one can be sure that he is presenting the real gist of it. One unavoidable result is, that people uninformed on the subject (including many of the medical profession) will think the book far-fetched; as a matter of fact it is merely well-informed and conservative, and remarkably free from the slant of any particular school of occultism or therapeutics. Published by the Theosophical Press at Covina, Calif.

M.L.

The Romance of
Metaphysics

This latest work of Dr. F.I. Regardie is described in his foreword as dealing with "certain points of relationship between the various metaphysical schemes and the fundamental concepts of modern psychology." Completed before the author entered the armed forces in 1942, "possibly a great deal more could be accomplished in way of synthesis todav... I have not gone too deeply into basic psychological concepts, but these are implicit in all the comments ventured..." The 288 pages fall into four parts, about 110 pages being devoted to Christian Science, about 70 to New Thought (I.N.T.A. and Neville), nearly as much to the Unity School, and the concluding 40-odd to A Newer Approach (techniques of relaxation and prayer). The outlook is psychoanalytical, and the central thesis the dependence of contemporary metaphysical systems on Christian Science for their basic concepts.

One would suppose it almost impossible to say anything new on the subject of Mary Baker Eddyism. Dr. Regardie, however, directs particular attention to the ideas and techniques of Quimby, in whom there has recently been a revival of interest, and to the philosophical backgrounds. The discussion of New Thought and especially of the Unity movement makes very interesting reading, in many wars astonishing to the newcomer to the subject. There has been a real need for a study that would integrate the various systems of mind-body healing and give perspective on them, and the author has abundant scholarship and much deftness of approach. The primary problem common to all of them is said to be that of complete relaxation of body and mind, and this leads up to the closing section, where a practical and thorough-going method is described in detail, which can be employed with or without the aid of a teacher. This section alone makes the book highly important to everyone interested in such matters - and it is certain that anyone who is not interested, should be. (Aries Press, Chicago. $3.10)     M.L.

[25]

Books -- Periodicals -- Announcements --

Sunflower:

15 No. Maryland Ave., Atlantic City, N.J. Bi-monthly, 2 yrs. $1.00. Book lists and book-finding service. Copy .10

New Age Interpreter:

Box 6133 Metropolitan Sta., Los Angeles. Year $1.50; 8 mo., $1.00

Chimes:

Box 157, Brea, Calif. Monthly, $1.00 yr. Bert L. Welch, Editor.

Spiritual Digest:

55 State Rd., Hampton Manor, Rensselaer, N.Y. Yr. $1.25

The Canadian Theosophist. 52 Isabella St., Toronto, Canada. $2.00 - .20

References

1. Donnelly, Ignatius. Atlantis: The Antediluvin World. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1817. Print. [Digital, 1882 ed.: <https://archive.org/details/atlantisantedil00donn>]
   Donnelly, Ignatius, and Egerton Sykes. Atlantis: The Antediluvian World. New York, N.Y: Gramercy Pub. Co, 1948. Print. <http://amzn.to/1DTyRDY>
2. Donnelly, Ignatius. Ragnarok: The Age of Fire and Gravel. New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1883. Print. [Digital: <https://archive.org/details/ragnarokageoffir00donn>]
3. Garver, Will L. Brother of the Third Degree. Chicago: Purdy Pub. Co., 1894. Print. [Digital: <hermetics.org/pdf/Brother_of_the_Third_Degree.pdf>]
4. Van, Uchelen J. C. Healing and Occult Science. Covina, Calif: Theosophical Univ. Press, 1947. Print. <http://amzn.to/1khiTwQ>
5. Regardie, Israel. The Romance of Metaphysics: An Introduction to the History, Theory and Psychology of Modern Metaphysics. Chicago: Aries Press, 1947. Print. <http://amzn.to/1GNtRyM>