Madame Blavatsky was the founder of the Theosophical Society and a prolific author. Here she examines the balance between personal spirituality and other aspects of our occult work, in a series of short essays intended for the student to meditate on and study. Occultism is not the acquirement of powers, whether psychic or intellectual, though both are its servants. Neither is occultism the pursuit of happiness, as men understand the word; for the first step is sacrifice, the second, renunciation. Occultism is the science of life, the art of living.