In the religion of Theosophy and the spiritual movement of Anthroposophy, some people believe the Akashic records are a collection of all events, thoughts, words, emotions, and intentions that have ever happened in the past, present, or future. This includes not only humans but also all living things and other beings. Some theosophists believe these records are stored in a non-physical world called the mental plane.
The word "Akasha" (ākāśa आकाश) comes from Sanskrit and means "aether," "sky," or "atmosphere."
History
The Sanskrit word akasha was introduced into theosophy by Helena Blavatsky (1831–1891). She described it as a type of life force and mentioned "indestructible tablets of the astral light" that record the past and future of human thoughts and actions. However, she did not use the term "akashic." The idea of an akashic record was later shared more widely by Alfred Percy Sinnett in his book Esoteric Buddhism (1883), where he included a quote from Henry Steel Olcott's A Buddhist Catechism (1881). Olcott wrote that Buddha taught two things are eternal: Akasa and Nirvana. He explained that everything comes from Akasa following a natural law, and all things eventually return to it.
By 1899, in Clairvoyance by C. W. Leadbeater, the term akashic records was fully connected to the idea. Leadbeater stated that a clairvoyant could read these records. In his 1913 book Man: Whence, How and Whither, he claimed to document the history of Atlantis and other ancient civilizations, as well as the future society of Earth in the 28th century.
In 1927, Alice A. Bailey wrote in The Light of the Soul that the akashic record is like a huge photographic film that shows all the desires and experiences of people on Earth. Those who can see it would witness these details clearly.
The Austrian theosophist Rudolf Steiner, who later founded Anthroposophy, used the concept of Akashic records in a series of articles in his journal Lucifer-Gnosis from 1904 to 1908. He wrote about Atlantis and Lemuria, topics related to their history and civilization. He also used the term in the title of lectures on a "Fifth Gospel" given in 1913 and 1914, after the creation of the Anthroposophical Society and his departure from the Theosophical Society in Adyar.
Edgar Cayce claimed he could access the Akashic records. Musician Prince used references to akashic records as a storytelling tool in his album The Rainbow Children, especially when discussing the history of slavery in the United States. In the Valiant Comics series Archer & Armstrong, the character Obadiah Archer can access the Akashic plane to copy all known human and superhuman abilities since the 2012 reboot.