Through his many books and lectures, CWL became very well known even during his lifetime. Many families moved to be near him, some from other countries. Some people who lived in the same house as him would wait outside his room for hours every day, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. One of his contemporaries said that just seeing him for a few minutes was enough to make her feel good for the whole day. She also said that sometimes complete strangers passing by would become entranced by him, simply because they felt his light-filled radiance. He was an extraordinary man, "on the threshold of divinity", as Mrs. Annie Besant put it. Bishop Wedgwood, for example, said that he was impressed by the fact that CWL could look up details in the subtle worlds while at the same time washing his hands for lunch.
Of course, his views were not equally appreciated by all people, especially when they were based on his clairvoyant perceptions, which not everyone could relate to. There were also people who wanted to harm him where they could, and in the end only harmed themselves. So, many people studied him. Reports, commentaries and biographies have been and are still being written about him. I would like to make some of them available here.
January 1909
An Invitation to Mr. Leadbeater to return
to the Theosophical Societyby The Editor (Annie Besant)Published in The Theosophist, pp. 2-3