Theos-Talk Archives (June 1994 Message tl00019)

Main points from a longer paper:

Toward a brief restatement of the synthesis of science, philosophy,
religion and ART.

What is art really? To answer this question we will define art, not
just as a product as in the fine arts including painting, sculpture,
music, and literature, but as the entire creative process.  We will be
painting with a broad brush so as to include art in the synthesis of
all creative acts that at once evidence diversity, but at the same time
point to an underlying unity.  This unity, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
called theosophy as documented in THE SECRET DOCTRINE which she called
the synthesis of science, philosophy and religion.  We will attempt to
show that art should be included in this synthesis.

Some assertions about art will help in this synthesis including:

1) All art is creative intelligence manifesting itself in time in form.

2) All art is spiritual (from the lowest material plane to the highest
plane)

3) All art presupposes consciouness relating to consciousness.  Art
relates or uncovers that which is seemingly hidden, the conciousness of
one being to another or to itself.  Art is the occult (consciousness
itself revealed)

4) All art is co-creative, that is, it requires an artist an a
participant (sender and receiver in comunnications theory).

5) the goal of art depends on the artist, but the highest art reaches
and transforms consciousness at its highest level.

6) The universe itself is a work of art as process with a plan and
purpose and is in progress through conscious artful (skillfull and yes,
slyly clever) evolution.

Blavatsky wrote very little on art as such.  Leadbetter claimed to see
the auras or thoughtforms around the music of Wagner and others.  But
theosophists tends to eschew direct discusssion of art.  I think art
contains science, philosophy and religion as process and points most
directly to divine unity that underlies theosophy.