For many years I have had the 1931 Dutch translation of this (in)famous book. I did not remember much of it, so I decided to get the Kindle version the VBros / Laura Gaie English translation.
It is a bit odd that the book is mostly known by its subtitle, as the actual title is: “Orthodoxie maçonnique”, ‘Masonic orthodoxy’. Or perhaps only a part of the book has become known as the rest of the original title is: “suivie de la Maçonnerie occulte et de l’initiation hermétique”, ‘followed by occult Freemasonry and Hermetic initiation’.
I remember why I did not remember much of the book. It is not all that interesting. There is even not very much about Freemasonry here. Ragon (1781-1862) presents more of a history of esotericism with extra stress on what was hip in his own days. What is quite annoying, is that he uses the term “Masonry” all the time “Iatric Masonry”, “Mesmerian Masonry”, as if anything esoteric is (Free)masonry.
Magic, Alchemy, Theosophy, the esotericism of his age, plants, animals, all good and well, but where is the Freemasonry? The book is not very ‘novel’ or particularly insightful. Just a compilation of descriptions of things esoteric like more were published in these days.
Another V Bros / Laura Gaie translation of an esoteric classic. This time the famous Traité Élémentaire de Science Occult of Gérard Encause (1865-1916), better known under the name “Papus”.
The Elementary Treatise is a mildly interesting book. In some parts Papus actually does explain “occult science”, but there are also parts in which he apparently only wants to display his knowledge (see how many esoteric authors I can name).
Papus writes about esotericism in the past, treats subjects such as Alchemy, Hermetism and Kabbalah. This is quite interesting, but halfway the book becomes more of a history of which there have been so many. The weirdest theories are presented and Papus keeps hammering on the fact that his thinking holds the middle between science and esotericism. He was obviously impressed by the new Theosophical movement that arose in his day.
The book is partly surprisingly interesting and partly surprisingly dull.
Again the book appears to have been translated automatically. There is a “glossary” at the end of Sédir and the author and some words are much different in English than they are in French, but this piece of text has just been translated, so you find English words under the wrong letter-lemet.
Anyway, thank you Laura Gaie for finally making such classic French texts available to a wider audience.
Pantano keeps publishing about the Italian esoteric underground of a century ago. After having focussed on Marco Daffi for a while, this time we get a wealth of information about Daffi’s ‘master’: Giuliano Kremmerz (1861–1930), born Ciro Formisano. Together with The Hermetic Science of Transformation, English speakers now have an wealth of texts of the Italian master.
Pantano’s book contains mostly texts of the Confraternita Terapeutica e Magica di Myriam (Therapeutic and Magic Brotherhood of Myriam). This concerns both organisational information, instructions and rituals.
The 330+ pages also contain texts of Pantano (summeries, memories, etc.) and some ‘related’ texts of followers of Kremmerz.
It is largely not really my cup of tea, but the book makes an interesting compendium of an interesting current. Also interestingly, one of Pantano’s own texts is very critical about Kremmerz, his system and most of his followers.
Baron Ricciardo Ricciardelli (1900-1969) was one of the interesting characters in the Italian esoteric scene of the early 20th century. Ricciardelli used the esoteric name Mörköhekdaph which was later Italianized to the name that he became best known by: Marco Daffi.
For a while, Daffi was in contact with Guiliano Kremmerz (1861–1930 born Ciro Formisano) and also he was familiar with Julius Evola (1898-1974). Even though there is overlap in the subjects that these people and the groups around them studied, and overlap in the people around them, the ‘esoteric scene’ of Italy was not homogenous.
David Pantano presents an interesting anthology with works of Daffi. Much of the material comes from Giammaria Gonnella, a long time contact of Daffi. The present book spans 350+ pages, has letters of Daffi to different people, some articles, and different approaches to the “vitae Daffianae” (biography).
The book is not a nicely structured book with Daffi’s teachings, but a huge pile of very welcome information about and of an interesting thinker and troubled man. It is really great to see that this type of material is getting more and more available and also in English.
Laura Gaie (V Bros publishing house) is not the first to translate and publish this book. She does not give much information about it though. The original book was called Les Petites Religions de Paris and was published in 1894 by Jules Antoine Henri Bois, who was born in Marseille in 1868 and passed away in New York in 1943.
Bois visited small esoteric and religious groups in Paris and makes reports of his visits. He has quite a ‘wooly’ language and had an open mind. You will read a few things about a variety of different groups. Mediterranean heathens, followers of Emanuel Swedenborgh (1688-1772), Theosophical type Buddists, “Theosophes”, but also Satanists (Paladians), Lucifereans, Gnostics and a few more. A few of the people who I have been reading recently are mentioned, usually in passing. It appears that around 1900 there was a lively esoteric ‘scene’ in Paris.
The book is an amusing read, but do not expect any in depth information. Rather the praises of an interested outsider.
Next name of the Belle Epoque esoteric authors is that of Paul Sédir (1871-1926). Les Miroirs Magiques was translated by Alex Bushman.
After some information about clairvoyance and other abilities, Sédir gives an overview of the use of different kinds of mirrors in different cultures and in different times and also about other types of divination. Sometimes he is quite explicit about the possible techniques that can be used. There is also information about astral worlds and similar subjects.
Even though the subject is not entirely mine, Sédir, just like Stanislaus de Guaita and unlike Jhourney or Papus, has a readable writing style with interesting details.
Albert Jounet (1863-1923) was an author from the esoteric circles of the French ‘Belle Epoque’. I have been reading more texts of this period recently and Jhourney’s Kabbalah book is mentioned in some of them.
Le Royaume de Dieu (‘the kingdom of God’) is not as much a book about (Jewish or Christian) Kabbalah, but more of ‘a Kabbalistic book’, so to say. About 100 pages filled with aphorisms roughly structured around the sephiroth.
Trinitarian Christian, less focused on the science of his day than other books that I have been reading, but (unfortunately) again not really my cup of tea.
In the Days of the Messiah, the World will be ruled by the Son of God and the great Church of the Magi. The Redeemer will be the Supreme Prophet, the Sovereign Pontiff and the King of Kings.
A random quote to give you an idea of the book. Some of the aphorisms are like this, other are more religious or spiritual, but this is not a learning book about either Kabbalah or Rosicrucianism. Some people may find (and have found) it inspirational.
It was a bit of a gamble to buy this A History of Esotericism – From the Paleolithic to the Axial Age with an approach somewhere between academic and spiritual. I was not really impressed.
The book is not much about esotericism. Rather it is a history of religion and philosophy. There does not appear anything new in the book, but perhaps on the positive side, neither did I encounter anything really incorrect or one sided. Kazlev presents a fairly down-to-earth history of human thinking. Here and there some of his preferences shine through, but overall the book is not bad.
Kazlev is not entirely dryly academic, but also not too ‘fluffy’. He starts many centuries in the past and ends with the Stoics of Greece. Perhaps there are plans for the second half of the story.
This book caught my attention because of the subtitle: “The Original American Illuminati Loge de Parfaits d’ Écosse ™- 1764”. That sounded like a reference to early ‘high degree’ Freemasonry in America. Connected to Rosicrucianity? In a way yes.
It is now generally accepted that this Rite of twentyfive “haut or hautes” or high degrees was compiled by Estienne Morin with help from Henry Francken, and these lessons are today titled “The Rites of the Royal Secret”.
Not entirely. Morin took his collection of degrees to America, where he tried to organise an Order of the Royal Secret. Francken translated the documents to English. These degrees would form the basis for the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite.
Mentz sets out to prove that this early high degree Freemasonry was somehow Rosicrucian. The Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite does indeed have a “Knight Rose Croix” degree (the 18th), but there is no degree with that name in the Morin/Francken manuscript! The predecessor “Knights of White Eagle or Pelican” is there though and already as the 18th degree.
Masonic Rose Croix and The Orders of Rosicruciana / Rose Cross philosophies attempt to gather and harvest the most valuable, mystical, and “life expanding” philosophies that can allow individuals to grow on a spiritual and mental level.
I think even the most esoterically inclined Freemason sees this a bit differently.
Traditional Rosicrucian and Masonic teachings also include many mental exercises and for the practitioner.
I have read one or two (early) Masonic rituals, but I have never encountered any “mental exercises”. Also not in the Morin/Francken texts.
It seems that the author has heard of an early lodge of high degree Freemasonry and used the name to make his book more interesting. Knights Templar are dragged in, he calls the lodge “Societe des Illumines”, but fails to give any information about the lodge or its alleged workings. Also there is little traditional Rosicrucianity in the book.
After the introduction Mentz quickly goes into some sort of “positive thinking” type writing. The “law of attraction”; even the “Kybalion” is used. All kinds of ‘will yourself rich’ type of phrases and countless of exercises in which I miss every connection to either Rosicrucianity or Freemasonry. Towards the end the Confessio Fraternitatis is translated and that is about it.
In spite of all the writing that is not really my cup of tea, I would have hoped for at least a bit more of information about the “Lodge of Parfaits from 1764”, what texts they used, etc. Nothing of all that. The author has just pulled up a few vague references to present his own system.
In the 18th and 19th century there have been many authors about whom many have heard, but not many have read their texts. Only relatively recently texts of such thinkers have become available in English and often these translations are not academic publications. Where is the ‘serious’ interest in people who have helped shape the (esoteric) world?
So here we have a translation of Des erreurs et de la vérité (1775) of Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin (1743-1803). Some Martinists decided to make some of the basic works of their system available to the general public. An interesting idea.
Charles Lucien de Lièvre is the translator of the book and he wrote the preface. At least the Kindle version turned to be a strange book. It seems that Lièvre wrote most of the book with only here and there a quote of Saint-Martin. He speaks of people who have not understood Martinism, there is a biography of sorts, he speaks of real and false Martinism, etc.
After about 60 pages a translation of the book of Saint-Martin follows. Short chapters in which Saint-Martin mostly reacts to scientific findings of his time. The book is not really ‘spiritual’ or even ‘esoteric’.
The introduction is too much ‘I know it all, everybody else knows nothing’ and the text of Martin is … can I say: “dated”?
I applaud the effort that was made to make texts such as this available to an audience that does not master French, though.
