Editing Root race (section)

{{Short description|Evolution stage in religious cosmology}}
{{third-party|date=January 2012}}
{{Religious text primary|date=December 2023}}
{{Theosophy}}
'''Root races''' are concepts in the [[esoteric cosmology]] of [[Theosophy]]. As described in [[Helena Petrovna Blavatsky]]'s book ''[[The Secret Doctrine]]'' (1888), these races correspond to stages of human [[evolution]], and existed mainly on [[Lost lands|now-lost continents]]. Blavatsky's model was developed by later theosophists, most notably [[William Scott-Elliot]] in ''The Story of Atlantis'' (1896) and ''The Lost Lemuria'' (1904). [[Annie Besant]] further developed the model in [[Man: whence, how and whither, a record of clairvoyant investigation|''Man: Whence, How and Whither'']] (1913). Both Besant and Scott-Elliot relied on information from [[Charles Webster Leadbeater]] obtained by "astral clairvoyance". Further elaboration was provided by [[Rudolf Steiner]] in ''Atlantis and Lemuria'' (1904).<ref>''Atlantis and Lemuria, The Submerged Continents of Atlantis and Lemuria, Cosmic Memory (Prehistory of Earth and Man), Aus der Akasha-Chronik.'' Rudolf Steiner (Written 1904; GA 11 / Bn 11)[http://www.rsarchive.org/Books/GA011/] English Edition, trans. Max Gysi [http://wn.rsarchive.org/Books/GA011/English/TPS1911/GA011_cover.html]</ref> Rudolf Steiner, and subsequent theosophist authors, have called the time periods associated with these races '''Epochs''' (Steiner felt that the term "race" was not adequate anymore for modern humanity).