Return To Lemuria

Prologue

New York, 16 November, 1888

Jemima Gadson considered herself a woman of worth. Her daddy was one of New York City’s most prominent architects and was in high demand for his special talents. She was proudly married to James Gadson, a decorated Lieutenant General in the U.S. Army. James helped coordinate the fundraising effort for the construction of the Statue of Liberty in 1886, spearheaded by close friend and owner of the New York World newspaper, Joseph Pullitzer. It was no surprise that the Gadson’s became very popular amongst New York’s high society as a result.

Close friend and confidant, Peggity Lipman, was over for tea. Peggity’s curly blond hair, framed the friendliest smile. She recently moved to the New York area with her family and met Jemima at one of the Liberty fundraisers. They hit it off right away.  

Jemima was sporting her new, pale-blue, box-pleated skirt. The latest fashion was a very narrow skirt, tied tightly behind the thighs. This made walking quite difficult. She twisted her hips in an attempt to relieve the pressure, while she bent over the stove to remove the teapot of rapidly boiling water. Jemima’s long brown hair was tied up into a bun, yet she instinctively brushed her free hand past her face to wipe away some imaginary strands.

“They say that she was the first Russian woman to acquire U.S. citizenship,” said Jemima nonchalantly, as she walked into the living room with a tray of tea and biscuits. The smell of hot tea and freshly baked goodies reminded Peggity of her mother’s kitchen in Louisiana.

“Oh, really? I’m so excited to meet her. Tell me more!” said Peggity in that typical, high-pitched, southern drawl.

Jemima sat down across from Peggity and began pouring the tea. “You know that when I first met her, she grabbed my hand and twisted it around to read my palm? She told me that I was a selfish lover with an enthusiasm for life, and I was to stop allowing myself to be manipulated by my mother.”

“And? Was she right?” Peggity shifted forward to the edge of her chair in anticipation.

“Spot on! I often find it hard to give in to James when we’re having a debate because I feel that it’ll make me appear weak. And then it dawned on me - my mother really does force me to do things that I never really feel like doing.”

“Oh. Wow,” said Peggity. “That’s incredible. She sounds truly amazing.”

“Yes. Such an inspiration.” Jemima sighed. “You know, that she started the Theosophical Society over fifteen years ago already?”

“Really?”

“Yes. Her teachings and philosophies make so much sense. I’ve never been clearer about who I am and my true purpose in this world.” Jemima gazed reflectively out of the window. 

“Oh golly!” exclaimed Peggity, as she glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. “It’s four o’clock. We’d betta get goin’.” She took an extra large sip of tea, placed her teacup down on the tray and then stood up to straighten her dress.

“Oh, yes, yes, of course,” agreed Jemima. “The Met is in Fifth Avenue, just a few blocks away. It shouldn’t take us too long to get there.”

The Metropolitan Museum of art was busy. Over one hundred people gathered in the Medieval Hall. Peggity and Jemima pushed their way to the front of the crowd, who were all waiting eagerly in front of an empty podium for their speaker to emerge. The prattling died down and turned to applause as soon as she arrived. Helena Petrova Blavatsky stepped up to the podium to welcome her supporters with a warm smile and open arms. She was small in stature but had a presence about her that was larger than life. This was partly due to her traditional Russian attire, consisting of a black petticoat, framed by a heavy, metal skirt. Her eyes seemed to bore right through the crowd as she looked out from beyond the wooden pedestal. Madame Blavatsky, as she came to be known, was born of Russian nobility and came to America in 1873. She spent most of her time promoting Eastern teachings and occult concepts through the Theosophical Society.

“Friends.” Her Russian accent was thick and heavy. “Welcome to the Metropolitan Museum and the launch of my new book, The Secret Doctrine.”

Applause and cheers erupted from the gathering of onlookers. Peggity squeezed Jemina’s hand in excitement.

“I would like to introduce you to a brief summary of the magnificent learnings that I have been fortunate to acquire during my travels to India and Tibet, without which, this work would not have been possible.” Helena scanned the crowd, drawing her listeners in like bees to honey. “We begin, as all beginnings do, with the creation of the world which occurred within seven epochs made up of seven days and seven nights. Mankind was given his own days and nights, contained within them a finite beginning and a finite end, emerging at birth into the light of his own day and departing at death into the darkness of his own night. Seven epochs also spanned humanity, the first of which was known as the Polarian root race. This epoch came into being 150 million years ago as a terrestrial race of spiritual beings, leaving no physical trace of their existence. They were ethereal and angel-like, described by the Aztecs as colossal, dark-skinned giants.”

There were murmurs from the crowd. Helena continued.

“The second root race was called the Hyperboreans. They lived near the North Pole, in the Land of the Eternal Sun. They were also etheric beings, leading spiritual lives with very little physical dependency. After a global cataclysm, the third root race, the Lemurians, emerged. They were the first root race to have physical bodies, although they were still considered a highly evolved spiritual race of man, with advanced psychic abilities. They experienced the mind and its awakening into a more physical existence, which included the formation of the sexes. They inhabited a continent called Lemuria that existed in the Pacific Ocean, between what is now America, Australia and the Orient. This vast continent was ravaged by volcanic and seismic activity and sank into the depths of the sea over 12,000 years ago, never to be seen again.” Madamme Blavatsky looked directly at Peggity.

“Oh me, oh my,” exclaimed Peggity. Her face went hot.

“The Atlanteans were the fourth root race. They came into existence towards the end of Lemurian epoch. They possessed advanced technological prowess and lived on the continent of Atlantis, which was destroyed due to the abuse of their psychic powers. The Atlanteans were the ancestors of the fifth root race, the Aryans, the present day epoch of terrestrial humanity. There are two epochs of humanity yet to come, the next one being the sixth root, often referred to as the New Age or Age of Aquarius. The seventh root race will only appear in a few millennium, when humanity reverts back to a purely spiritual existence.”

“Ohh,” Jemima turned to look at Peggity who was fanning her face. She looked completely flustered. “This is just too much for me, Jemima. I must have a copy of that there book. I do believe that it will completely change my life.”