Reflections on The Voice of the Silence: by H.P. Blavatsky Hardcover – March 17, 2026

The extraordinary work that is The Voice of the Silence contains 316 verses. Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, who wrote them down from memory, tells us in her introduction that they were part of a larger whole, called the Book of the Golden Precepts. Others tell us that they derive from a sixth-century Buddhist school.The gem The Voice of the Silence, which is characterised by short concentrated texts, comes from a school of initiation; it is also intended for people who follow a Spiritual School. It is a spiritual guide for ‘students of mysticism in the East’, says the author in her Preface. ‘The knowledge of it is obligatory in that School whose teachings are accepted by many Theosophists.’ The book is more than that, it contains a universal wisdom and offers essential insights to every person who strives for truth; it has therefore been part of the core literature of many seekers all over the world for more than one hundred years.It is a special privilege that we can take note of these teachings. Anyone who feels attracted to them can read and study them without belonging to a Spiritual School. Yet it is impossible to fully taste the depth, the humanity and the love of the teachings of this truly compassionate wisdom without at the same time putting them into practice in a group of kindred spirits.The reader who takes in the reflections of Jan van Rijckenborgh in the present publication will understand why this is said. He wrote these in the years 1962-1963 and also as addresses for pupils of the Lectorium Rosicrucianum - the School of the Golden Rosycross - which is an initiation school.A remark is called for here. H.P. Blavatsky wrote The Voice of the Silence in 1889. She always advised Theosophists who sometimes turned to her with concerns about the future: ‘Read the Voice – Read the Voice of the Silence – it contains all the answers to your questions.’ She saw this text as a final gift to those who were able to perceive something of the Light, and the world of the Light that stands behind it. Read more