Raghavan Iyer (1930-1995), besides being a noted theosophist, was leader and organizer of the Theosophy Lodge of Santa Barbara, and a beloved teacher of political science and philosophy at University of California, Santa Barbara. He gained many followers and acolytes during his tenure at the university, with his spellbinding talks about "the meaning of life". Charismatic both on and off the stage, Iyer continued his teaching outside the college, and his lectures in Santa Barbara were always packed with enthusiastic crowds. Near the end of his life, he suffered numerous charges of infidelity, which tarnished his image as the "Prophet of Goleta", as disillusioned former supporters left the fold. After his death, his wife continued to lead the Theosophy group from her home in Painted Cave. Many of Iyer's former students still have fond memories of this brilliant, if flawed, personality; a man who introduced young and old alike to the world of spiritual and ethical ideals.

Quotations

"..the Brotherhood of Bodhisattvas, the Society of Sages, the Lodge of Mahatmas continuously resides on this cosmic plane of supreme cognition. These self-luminous beings are everywhere and nowhere.. Yet, while there are .. secret centres of initiation, access to the Brotherhood has nothing to do with physical

"It is truly the case that the Perfect Sage has no name and no form. He lives in the nameless, and he is formless. But the current of light-energy and good represented by such a being leaves one no choice except to be with it or to be tossed away by its force. Starting from small concepts and simple examples, one can see that the notion of perfectibility embraces something so much vaster than can ever be put into any categories. At the same time, it is a viable, living, relevant ideal for every human being, because each human being archetypally goes through the same stages, is involved in the same powers and faculties, and lives in a common field of space, time and energy. Every human being by day, and certainly in deep sleep at night, experiences something of the true meaning of the odyssey of

--from "The Philosophy of Perfection mple examples, one can see that the notion of perfectibility embraces something so much vaster than can ever be put into any categories. At the same time, it is a viable, living, relevant ideal for every human being, because each human being archetypally goes through the same stages, is involved in the same powers and faculties, and lives in a common field of space, time and energy. Every human being by day, and certainly in deep sleep at night, experiences something of the true meaning of the odyssey of

"..the State nor any social organization is allowed to flout with impunity the sacred principle that every man is entitled to his relative truth and no one can claim the right to coerce another, to treat him as a means to his own end." --from

Works

• Editor: The Glass Curtain Between Asia and Europe. London; Oxford University Press: 1965.

Le rideau de verre. Paris; La Table Ronde: 1965.Der Glaserne Vorhang Zwischen Asien Und Europa. Munich; Georg Verlag: 1968.

• The Moral and Political Thought of Mahatma Gandhi. New York; Oxford University Press: 1973.

Galaxy Paperback, OUP: 1978.Second Edition, Santa Barbara; Concord Grove Press: 1983.

• Parapolitics - Toward the City of Man. New York, Oxford University Press, 1977.

Second Edition, Santa Barbara; Concord Grove Press: 1983.