by Francesca Arundale
| [Transcribed from the original in the Archives of the Society for Psychical Research. A portion of this narrative was quoted in Proceedings of the S.P.R. (London), Volume III, 1885, pp. 387-388. This online edition is reprinted by permission of the Society for Psychical Research, London.] |
A record of some phenomena which occurred during the stay of Madame Blavatsky at 77 Elgin Crescent Notting hill in the months of July and August 1884.
One morning in July I was called by Madame Blavatsky to her room where she was still in bed. She desired me to open a drawer and give her out a letter which was lying there closed and addressed. I did so. She asked me to notice that the letter was addressed in the handwriting of a person whom I knew, that it was fastened and apparently had not been opened. She then took a match and having lighted it proceeded to burn the letter. I protested against this being done but she answered "it is the Master's orders" and further added "you had better go to your room and meditate." I went up stairs into my room and shut the door. I remained there some time considering the whole affair. The window of the room, which was at the top of the house, was wide open and looked out into a garden. Before the window was a dressing table on which was a pink cloth, there was no mirror on the table only one or two small articles of toilet, and the sun was shining full into the room. I went to the window without any definite reason and as I approached the table I perceived on the pink cover a large white envelope. I took it up looked at it and found that it was closed and evidently contained a letter, but there was no superscription. I had the letter in my hand for a little while and then looked at it again. To my great surprise I found that where but a few moments previously there had been a blank space there was distinctly visible a name and address written in purple ink in a hand-writing which I well knew as being that of one of the Mahatmas. The name and address was that of the writer of the letter I had previously seen burned.
Another incident I have to describe occurred a short time after the above narrated fact. One night I wrote a letter to one of the Mahatmas touching a question entirely of personal interest. This letter I placed in an envelope, closed it and put it in my pocket and told no one that I had written it. I carried the letter in my pocket during the following day and night. The next morning while engaged in conversation with Madame Blavatsky she suddenly paused in what she was saying and apparently listening and repeating something she heard said: "Tell Miss A. it is a question of Karma" and further proceeded to give me an answer to the question contained in the letter I had written which was still in my pocket and which I can certify had been seen by no one.
Francesa Arundale