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Reader and Collector, v. 3, issue 6, January 1946

Page 26

26.

In "Shadow Out of Time" he writes,

A few of the myths had significant connections with the cloudy legends of the pre-human world, especially those Hindu tales involving stupefying gulfs of time and forming part of the lore of the modern Theosophists... Primal myth and modern delusion joined in their assumption that mankind is only one- perhaps the least - of the highly evolved and dominant races of this planet's long and largely unknown career.8

Parallels Between the races mentioned by Blavatsky and Lovecraft are here drawn up to show that not only the basic idea, but details of the races themselves were adopted in Lovecraft's mythology.

BLAVATSKY
The Fish-man, early type of man as yet unaccepted by science, but established in occult history.

LOVECRAFT
The Deep Ones; half-fish creatures who lived and mated on the floor of the ocean.

BLAVATSKY
The Third Root-Race, shells of human beings with organs grown by force of will.

LOVECRAFT
Shaggoths, multi-cellular masses with organs induced by hypnotism.

BLAVATSKY
Atlantean Root-Race, whose great knowledge put them in advance of modern science. Dispelled by misuse of powers. Winged race.

LOVECRAFT
The Elder Ones, of great intelligence, driven to the Antartic because of misuse of powers. A winged race.

BLAVATSKY
First Root-Race, boneless plastic organisms without organs. Remnants in Antartic and Australia.

LOVECRAFT
The Great Race, Half-vegetable beings, remains in Australia and the Antartic.9

The seven cycles by which these races came and went were controlled by the Polar star, according to Lovecraft. In "Polaris" he tells of a song the star sings to the hero to explain the strange places and events he had met in dreams.

Slumber, watch till the spheres,
Six and twenty thousand years
Have revolved, and I return
To the spot where now I burn.10

After 26,000 years the age of which the hero dreams will return to the earth. Madam Blavatsky's cycle controlling the polar year is 25,686 years, based on reasoning from Dendera Zodiac. Lovecraft used round numbers, it can be assumed, for the sake of poetry.
___________________
8. The Outsider and Others, P.410
9. These descriptions have been drawn from both Isis Unveiled and Kuhn's Theosophy. Lovecraft's races have been drawn from his stories.
10. Op.cet., p. 8.

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26. In "Shadow Out of Time" he writes, A few of the myths had significant connections with the cloudy legends of the pre-human world, especially those Hindu tales involving stupefying gulfs of time and forming part of the lore of the modern Theosophists... Primal myth and modern delusion joined in their assumption that mankind is only one- perhaps the least - of the highly evolved and dominant races of this planet's long and largely unknown career.8 Parallels Between the races mentioned by Blavatsky and Lovecraft are here drawn up to show that not only the basic idea, but details of the races themselves were adopted in Lovecraft's mythology. BLAVATSKY The Fish-man, early type of man as yet unaccepted by science, but established in occult history. LOVECRAFT The Deep Ones; half-fish creatures who lived and mated on the floor of the ocean. BLAVATSKY The Third Root-Race, shells of human beings with organs grown by force of will. LOVECRAFT Shaggoths, multi-cellular masses with organs induced by hypnotism. BLAVATSKY Atlantean Root-Race, whose great knowledge put them in advance of modern science. Dispelled by misuse of powers. Winged race. LOVECRAFT The Elder Ones, of great intelligence, driven to the Antartic because of misuse of powers. A winged race. BLAVATSKY First Root-Race, boneless plastic organisms without organs. Remnants in Antartic and Australia. LOVECRAFT The Great Race, Half-vegetable beings, remains in Australia and the Antartic.9 The seven cycles by which these races came and went were controlled by the Polar star, according to Lovecraft. In "Polaris" he tells of a song the star sings to the hero to explain the strange places and events he had met in dreams. Slumber, watch till the spheres, Six and twenty thousand years Have revolved, and I return To the spot where now I burn.10 After 26,000 years the age of which the hero dreams will return to the earth. Madam Blavatsky's cycle controlling the polar year is 25,686 years, based on reasoning from Dendera Zodiac. Lovecraft used round numbers, it can be assumed, for the sake of poetry. ___________________ 8. The Outsider and Others, P.410 9. These descriptions have been drawn from both Isis Unveiled and Kuhn's Theosophy. Lovecraft's races have been drawn from his stories. 10. Op.cet., p. 8.