Agni Yoga Society
Yoga or just Theosophical Buddhism?
Origin
The Agni Yoga Society was founded in 1920 by Helena and Nicholas Roerich. It is a non-profit educational institution incorporated in 1946 under the laws of the State of New York, and is supported entirely by voluntary contributions and membership dues. The organization was located in the building Master Apartments. The aims of the Society are embodied in the philosophy that gives it its name—Agni Yoga—as contained in the books of the Agni Yoga Series published by the Society. In them is found a synthesis of ancient Eastern beliefs and modern Western thought and a bridge between the spiritual and the scientific.
Who is Agni?
Agni is the Hindu god of fire. He is regarded as the friend and protector of humanity, in particular, he safeguards the home. Various forms of fire are associated with Agni and include the sun, lightning, comets, sacrificial fire, domestic fires, the fire of the funeral pyre, and the digestive fire which is within all humans. Agni was especially important in the Vedic period (1500-500 BCE), and the Vedas contains more hymns to him than to any other deity. He is still considered today omnipresent though not directly worshipped. Agni knows the thoughts of all people and is a witness to all important actions, hence the use of fire in many important Hindu ceremonies such as marriages. He is also referred to in sacred texts such as the Mahabharata as the 'Oblation-devourer' and the 'Purifier'. With flaming hair and riding a goat, he is easily identified in Hindu art.
What is Agni Yoga?
Probably the simplest and most profound definition is that Agni Yoga is related to light, energy, and fire. For years and years as students, we try to comprehend. ‘What is fire?’ It seems to have such a mystery behind it. Well, here are some very simple yet profound definitions: Fire is life. It is also purity, cleansing, and abundance. Fire also means the inner essence of a person. Think of this, even if we’re not on the path of Agni Yoga, even if we’re not on any path, we are still fiery beings. If a person is dead, there is no heat in their body, nor in their emotions, mind, or spirit. I remember when a dear friend made his transition, and at his funeral, I walked up to the coffin and touched him. It was the first time I had ever touched a dead person. The body is cold. There is no heat; there is no Light, there is no radiation coming from that body. In other words, there is no fire. It is the inner fire that gives Light to all beings. It is that Divine Spark, which we call the Monad, that gives us the Light, and that Light is the inner fire.
Connection to the Theosophic Society
Nicholas and Helena Roerich (1874-1947 and 1879-1955 respectively) were Russians and great admirers of their countrywoman H. P. Blavatsky (founder of the modern Theosophical Movement) and her work.
Beginning in 1924 with the publication in Russian of “Leaves of Morya’s Garden” they promulgated their own spiritual teachings which they called “Agni Yoga” and which they claimed had been inspired and dictated to Helena by the Master Morya, the Guru of HPB. Theosophists will be aware that the Master Morya and the Master Koot Hoomi were the two Mahatmas of the Trans-Himalayan Brotherhood who were most closely and directly connected with HPB and the founding of the Theosophical Society.
The way they became Theosophists is described in the diary of their devoted follower Sina Fosdick, who wrote “In 1919 in London, the Roerichs became acquainted with . . . the spiritual legacy of their predecessor H. P. Blavatsky, wherein a large amount was written about the Great White Brotherhood including the basics of Their Teachings. In London also occurred the unexpected physical meeting of Helena Roerich with two Mahatmas.“
Engrossed with Theosophical mysticism, they now had millenarian expectations that a new age was imminent, and they wished to travel to India as soon as possible. They joined the English-Welsh chapter of the Theosophical Society. It was in London, in March 1920, that the Roerichs founded their own school of mysticism, Agni Yoga, which they described as "the system of living ethics."
A Big Push for the Arts
Nicolas Roerich is known as a thinker and a builder of life. His art and writings are an evocation to beauty, knowledge, and culture. His vision is captured in his philosophical statement of the Master Institute of United Arts which he formed in New York City in 1921:
Art will unify all humanity. Art is one – indivisible. Art has its many branches, yet all are one. Art is the manifestation of the coming synthesis. Art is for all.
Louis L. Horch and Nettie S. Horch financed and directed the Master Institute that taught the fine and dramatic arts. For much of its existence, the Master Institute was housed in the Master Apartments, designed by Harvey Wiley Corbett in 1929 for Roerich and built on the site of the former Horch mansion at 310 Riverside Dr. in New York City.
The International Center of the Roerichs: An NGO
The International Center of the Roerichs (Russian: Междунаро́дный це́нтр Ре́рихов) is a non-governmental public association of citizens and public associations incorporated on the basis of their common interests in the cause of study, preservation, and popularization of the Roerich family heritage. The Center is an associated member of the Non-Governmental Organizations Association under the United Nations Department of Public Information. Conducting its activities, this international public organization proceeds by applying the law of the states in which its structural divisions are acting, the United Nations Charter, norms of international law and international legal acts related to the Center's sphere of activity.
Critiques
The Russian Orthodox Church criticises Agni Yoga as New Age:
The ideology of the New Age serves outstanding contemporary philosophers: Gregory Bateson, Ken Wilber, Paul Feyerabend. On a grand scale is the creation and support of international organizations, contained in the ideology of the New Age. In Russia and in Ukraine, the international movement "To Health via Culture", based on the teachings of Agni Yoga, operates and has a great publishing activity.
Symbolism
Closing
Is Agni Yoga little more than just another facet of the New Age Movement born of Theosophy? And, if so, was it designed to make the spread of Occultism more palatable for Western Societies? It clearly is Eastern Mysticism with a focus on self. A common theme among Occultists.