Written in the form of question and answer, The Key to Theosophy is an excellent introduction for the inquirer. After the publication of Isis Unveiled and The Secret Doctrine, the author was deluged with questions about the human constitution, spiritual and psychological; the mysteries of periodic rebirths; and the difference between fate, destiny, free will, and karma. These and many other questions on the basic theosophical concepts are answered simply and directly. The work is enhanced by a 60-page glossary of philosophical terms drawn from Sanskrit, Hebrew, and classical literature.
Helena Petrovna Blavatsky was born on August 12, 1831, at Dnepropetrovsk (Ekaterinoslav), Ukraine, daughter of Colonel Peter Alexeyevich von Hahn and novelist Helena Andreyevna (née de Fadeyev). In 1849 she married N. V. Blavatsky, and shortly thereafter began more than 20 years of extensive travel, bringing her into contact with mystic traditions the world over.