User:Bobb999/Dr. Henry B. Pullen Burry

Dr. Henry B. Pullen Burry (1855 or 1857? - Dec.30, 1927)[1] was an English medical doctor, best known as an occultist and author of the book "Qabalism", who belonged to the famous occult group The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, founded in London in 1888. The Order taught and practiced ceremonial magic, Qabalism and Rosicrucianism. He was married to Rose Pullen Burry with whom he had two daughters,Ethel and Winifred.[2]

On Nov. 27, 1892, he joined the Isis-Urania Temple [3], which was the first founded Golden Dawn temple(in 1888). Other temples were established elsewhere later. Each Golden Dawn member was required to choose a magical motto. Dr. Pullen Burry chose "Anima Pura Sit" ("Let the Soul Be Pure"). His wife Rose joined the Order in 1894. Her motto was "Urge semper igitur" ("Always press forward"?).[5]

He rose rapidly in the Isis-Urania Temple governing hierarchy, becoming its Sub-Cancellarius official in July,1894, promoted to Cancellarius Nov., 1896. Cancellarius (Latin for "Chancellor") of a G.D. temple was its chief keeper of records and was one of the top three presiding officials in authority over a temple. During the late 1890s internal revolt against top leader and co-founder of the G.D. Order, Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers, Dr. Pullen Burry remained in the camp that stayed loyal to Mathers.[6]

We don't know the reasons for it (did the G.D. schism perhaps have something to do with it?), but we know Dr. Pullen Burry unexpectedly abandoned family, his G.D. temple, and home country to emigrate to the USA, initially drawn by the lure of gold during the Klondike Gold Rush.[7] The Klondike began as a widespread rush in 1897, peaking in 1888 as far as drawing the largest numbers (in the tens of thousands)of would-be-wealthy gold miners,the vast majority of whom ended up disappointed, and poorer for their adventure. The best mining claims had already been staked very early on, mostly by locals already up there, and not by the hordes of hopefuls who came later. Without having evidence to the contrary,it's probably a safe bet to think Dr. Pullen Burry did not succeed as a gold prospector. One could speculate his medical skills may have stood him in good stead though, and perhaps he made a decent living treating medical complaints of the masses of prospectors drawn North. Prominent G.D. member Annie Horniman came to the rescue of the Doctor's abandoned family, taking them under her wing financially, and paying for the education of the two daughters. Wife Rose later remarried.[8]

Dr. Pullen Burry did not abandon occultism when he moved to America however. He reportedly influenced the development of several temples in the U.S., organized along G.D. lines. He corresponded for many years with American Paul Foster Case, who wrote a well known book on the Tarot. Pullen Burry encouraged Case to found his own U.S. based,G.D. influenced occult organization, which came to be known as The Builders of the Adytum.[9]

== Pullen Burry and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle ==

Thanks to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, we have an interesting first-hand description of Dr. Pullen Burry. Conan Doyle wrote of him in an article "Early Psychic Experiences", published in Pearson's Magazine, March,1924. [Quote from Conan Doyle]:"There was a small doctor dwelling near me, small in stature, and also I fear, in practice. Pullen Bury [sic] was the name. He was a student of the occult, and my curiosity was aroused by learning that he had one room in his house which no one entered but himself, as it was reserved for mystic and philosophic purposes."[10] According to occult historian Ellic Howe, "Pullen Burry suggested that Conan Doyle should join the G.D., but did not reveal its name. Conan Doyle described an unusual dream which he appeared to equate with an 'astral visit' made by some member of the Order to discover whether or not he was a suitable candidate.He decided not to ask for admission."[10] Another occult historian, R.A. Gilbert,mentions Conan Doyle's meetings with Pullen Burry occurred in 1898. Gilbert further quotes Conan Doyle as saying he in fact found his apparent astral examination "queer and disagreeable"[11]. A month or two later, Pullen Burry brought [fellow G.D. member] Dr. Felkin to see him. The [Conan Doyle] article records his two visitors' extraordinary conversation about an 'astral journey' they had made together to Central Africa." [Quote from Conan Doyle's article]: "To return to the little doctor, he went out to the Klondyke [sic] and I lost sight of him for a long time. From what I learnt, I should judge that the powers of this society included that of loosening their own etheric bodies, in summoning the etheric bodies of others (mine for example), and in making thought images...But their line of development or philosophy is beyond me. I was destined to meet Pullen Burry again, for when I was in America last year I found him full of Rosicrucian lore and occult knowledge."[10]

If Conan Doyle had decided to join instead of reject the G.D.,he would have joined the ranks of a number of famous folks who became members, including writers W.B. Yeats, Arthur Machen, and Algernon Blackwood, Irish revolutionary Maude Gonne, British stage actress Florence Farr, and Oscar Wilde's wife Constance Mary Wilde who joined in the first year, 1888. Others became well known as occultists after first training under the G.D. or its offshoots, most notoriously Aleister Crowley. Aside from G.D. founders S.L.M. Mathers and W.Wynn Westcott, some other respected occultists/occult writers that emerged from the G.D. system were: Ms. Dion Fortune, Dr. Israel Regardie, James W. Brodie Innes, William G. Gray, William E. Butler, Gareth Knight,and Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki, to name but a few.[12] [13]

The Writer
Dr. Henry B. Pullen Burry wrote at least two books that were published. One is a little known book called "Our Morning Bath".Since he was a M.D.,one might wonder if it was on the topic of personal hygiene and health. The other is his much better known "Qabalism", published by The Yogi Publication Society, Chicago, 1925. The Yogi Publication Society hardcover has been reprinted repeatedly through the decades,and may still be in print. A softcover edition published by Kessinger Publishing in 2003 remains in print as of this writing. In his book "Qabalism", Pullen Rurry challenges Qabalistic orthodoxy by putting forth his own theory that the Tree of Life, the central symbolic diagram of Qabalah mysticism, should have 34 paths linking its 10 Sephira (or Spheres),instead of 32 paths, as traditionally taught.

Birth and Death
A reference to dates of his birth and death is found in the book "The Collected Letters of W.B. Yeats, Vol I" in a note on p. 430, reporting birth and death dates as "(1857 - c. 1927)" for Dr. Henry B. Pullen Burry. However, an original newspaper clipping in this Wikipedia article original author's possession,from a newspaper dated Monday,January 3, 1927 gives the following disappointingly short obituary: "Burry - Dr. Henry B. Pullen-Burry, Multnomah Hospital, Dec. 30, 72 years. Toxemia." A little more biography would have been welcome. Toxemia often refers to bacterial infections, which were more often fatal in the 1920s than now, before anti-biotics, which didn't emerge as a life-saving medical treatment until the late 1930s, starting with penicillin. Unfortunately, the clipping does not identify the newspaper it is from. Multnomah Hospital is in Portland Oregon, Multnomah being the county the city's located in. It's possible the clipping may be from The Oregonian. We know Dr. Pullen Burry died in Portland, Oregon, but whether he lived there for many years previous or not is unclear at this writing. If the newspaper obituary is correct that he was 72 years old, that would suggest he was likely born in 1855, not 1857 as the note in "The Collected Letter of W.B. Yeats Vol IV" says.