"The Secret Doctrine, Vol. 2 of 4" by H. P. Blavatsky is a pseudoscientific esoteric work published in 1888. This volume, titled Anthropogenesis, traces humanity's alleged origins through millions of years across ethereal and physical "Root Races." Blavatsky claims these races inhabited lost continents like Lemuria and Atlantis, rejecting Darwinian evolution while proposing that humans preceded apes. Her controversial theory suggests mindless early humans degraded themselves, producing anthropoid ancestors through physical debasement rather than natural selection.