The Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross ( French Ordre kabbalistique de la Rose-Croix , also spelling the “ Kabbalistic Order of the Rose † of the Cross ”) is the first secret occult society in France at the end of the 19th century [1] . The order was reorganized by the Marquis Stanislas de Guaita and his friend Josephine Peladan of the Toulouse Order of the Rosicrucians in 1888 [2] .
The structure and teaching of the order in many respects had similarities and intersections with the Martinist order of Papus [3] , however, the Martinist order itself was for him an “external circle” [4] , and the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross was integrated with its governing body - the “Supreme Council of the Martinist Order ” [4] .
The main area of study and the main direction of spiritual work in the order is Christian Kabbalah [3] .
Content
Toulouse Order of the Rosicrucians and the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross
In 1884, the Marquis Stanislas de Guaita, after reading the novel by Joseph Peladan , which touched on the themes of the Rosicrucianism, met him in Paris [5] . At that time, Joseph Peladan and his brother Adrian Peladan were already in the "Toulouse Order of the Rosicrucians" [2] . They introduced Stanislas de Guaite to the head of the Order, known under a mystical pseudonym - “Simon Brugal” (real name - Firmen Boissein), and he dedicated it [2] .
According to the previous chapter of the Toulouse Order of the Rosicrucians, viscount de Lapasso, this order was the very legendary and secret order of the Rosicrucians , whose first document was first published in the early 1600s [2] . The secret society researcher John Michael Greer also believes, arguing that the continuity and origin of the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross through the Toulouse Order of the Rosicrucians dates back to the first Rosicrucian brotherhoods in medieval Germany [6] . However, documented succession of the Order was confirmed only until the XVIII century [2] .
Due to the small number of initiates in the Toulouse Order, and the general decline in internal activity in it, the order began to decline after the death of Firmen Boissin [2] . Wanting to restore the Rosicrucian movement, Stanislas de Guaita and Joseph Peladan in 1888 transformed the Order of Toulouse into the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross [2] . However, it should be noted that they saw the revival of the Rosicrucianism in too different ways, which ultimately led to a gap between friends [2] [7] [6] .
Immediately after the transformation and restoration of the order, they accepted into it their friend Gerard Ankoss , known under the pseudonym " Papus " [8] and Francois-Charles Barlet [6] . In the first years of its existence, A. Gabrol, Henri Thorion, Julien Leger, Oswald Wirth , Auguste Chaboseau, Victor-Emile Michelet, Paul Sedir , Paul Adam and Marc Aven [9] [10] were accepted into the order.
A year before the founding of the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross in 1887, Papus , together with Pierre-Auguste Chaboseau, on the basis of the dedication of one (each) of the lines of continuity from Saint-Martin [note 1] , combining their lines, founded “l'Ordre des Superieurs Inconnus ”(“ Order of the Higher Unknown ”), which gained fame under the name of the Martinist Order [4] . Until 1891, Stanislas de Guaita led the admission to the Martinist order, and compiled some training materials for him, and an initiative speech delivered at an elevation to one of the degrees [11] . By 1891, the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross was mutually integrated with the “Supreme Council of the Martinist Order” [4] .
The doctrine and structure of the order
The Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross conducted classes in Christian Kabbalah , an esoteric form of mysticism , the purpose of which is to reveal the hidden mystical ability to "penetrate the essence of the Bible and the Divine essence" [6] . The order also conducts exams and awards degrees named after academic degrees at universities in relation to Christian Kabbalah classes [6] . From the moment of its creation, this feature favorably distinguished the order from the bulk of secret magical societies of that period, who took the degrees of Freemasonry as a model and did not conduct training and a qualitative test of knowledge before elevations to the following degrees [6] .
Degrees of the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross
- Kabbalah Bachelor [3]
- Licensee of Kabbalah [3] ( Master of Kabbalah [6] )
- Dr. Kabbalah [3]
The structure of the degrees of the order was created in the form of the University of Christian Kabbalah and Magic . Degrees are assigned only to those who attend lectures and pass exams [6] .
Manages the Order of the Council of the Twelve. At the time of Stanislas de Guaita, it was customary to reveal the names of only six of them to the members of the order, and hide the names of the remaining six [1] . This was motivated by the fact that it would be easier for the order to be reborn in case of decline [6] .
The Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross and the Catholic Order of the Rose + Cross
In the year 1890-1891, the Josephine Peledan left the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross. He established his own, the Catholic Order of the Rose + Cross, known for organizing art exhibitions of the Symbolists on its basis [6] . However, in the occult sphere the order of Peladan ceased all activity [6] . The reason for the split was the statement of Peladan in one of the issues of the l'Initiation magazine that he “ refuses to hang around with spiritualism , Freemasonry or Buddhism ” [10] . Stanislas de Guaita, in turn, said that he did not want to turn the Order into salons for artists [12] . In 1893 , after a series of exhortation letters in which de Guaita asked Peladan to change the name of the order so that no association of his salon activity with the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross would arise [12] , he goes on to a sharper tone and declares in the l'Initiation magazine: “ We, the brothers of the Roses † of the Cross, announce that the said Mr. Peladan is a Rosicrucian schismatic and apostate; we renounce him and condemn his so-called “Catholic Order of the Rose † of the Cross” before the tribunal of public opinion ” [13] . Papus also signed this document, but later regretted it [10] .
Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross in the 20th Century
After the sudden death of the Marquis Stanislas de Guaita in 1897 , power in the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross passes to Francois-Charles Barla [3] . However, he soon transfers all authority to Papus [3] . Soon after this, the order stops accepting new members, and already accepted ones oblige them to sign an oath " to keep silence about everything regarding the secrets of the order " [3] .
In this form, the order lasted until the outbreak of World War I. Papus volunteered for the front, where he worked as a doctor at a field hospital, until he was advised, due to infection with tuberculosis, from which he died on October 25, 1916 [14] [15] . Charles Detre (Teder) was elected as the successor to Papus both in the Martinist order and in the Kabbalistic order of the Rose + Cross. October 29, 1916 - four days after the death of Papus, Teder takes leadership in both organizations [16] [17] . After the end of the First World War, and the death of Teder in 1918, the Martinist order was divided into two branches:
- The Synarchical Order of the Martinists, led by Grand Master Victor Blanchard, under the Teder Charter.
- Lyon of the Martinist Order, led by Grand Master Jean Bricot.
The Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross did not maintain contact with the Lyon Martinist Order, since the only living member of the “Council of the Twelve”, Viktor Blanchard, who was admitted to it in 1913, interrupted the ritual communication of the members of the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross with the Martinist Lodges under Jean Brico [18] . Subsequently, in the 1920s, Jean Briquetau would create from scratch the “Gnostic Order of the Rose + Cross”, trying to compensate for the break with the Kabbalistic, but this idea did not take root among the occult societies of France, and after World War II itself came to naught [19 ] .
Later, after the Second World War , the martinist and freemason Robert Ambelain received the succession of the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross through the Synarchical Order of the Martinists, and until 1968, using membership in the Council of the Twelve, he tried to unite all the dedicated martinist branches [20 ] . But this venture was unsuccessful due to the split that occurred due to disputes about whether members of the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross and the Order of the Martinists are required to first be ordained into Freemasonry [6] . The Kabbalistic Order of the Rose + Cross remained in alliance with the Synarchical Order of the Martinists, who insisted on the need for preliminary initiation into Freemasonry [20] . Despite past disagreements and shocks, the order still operates in the United States of America and has a branch in France [6] .
See also
- Martinism
- Rosicrucians
- Alchemy
- Gerard Ancoss ( Papus )
- Stanislas de Guaita
- Joseph Peladan
- Oswald Wirth
- Robert Ambelin
Notes
- ↑ Louis Claude de Saint-Martin , a famous 18th-century French mystic, was a disciple of Martinez de Pasqually , and a member of the Order of the Knights Freemasons founded by Pasqualis , the Selected Coens of the Universe , who taught the practice of theurgy , and the mystical doctrine of the fall of mankind from the original divine state, as well as how to return to this state through theurgical ceremonies. After the death of the House of Martinez, Saint-Martin, being one of his heirs in the administration of the Order of the Elected Coens, reformed the operational part of the teaching, abolishing complex ceremonies, and introduced instead an internal mystical practice based on prayer and meditation. He also reformed the system of degrees: from the initial ten, first reduced to seven, and then generally to one degree, called the “Highest Unknown” (S ::: I ::: / French Superieur Inconnu ). Initiation to this degree, Saint-Martin, having abolished as a result the order structure itself, passed on to his disciples in a narrow circle, with the right to transfer this initiation further. After the death of Saint-Martin, the transfer of initiation to this degree was transmitted from teacher to student throughout the 19th century , and thus these continuity lines reached Gerard Ankoss ( Papus ) and Pierre-Auguste Chaboseau. At the time of the dedication of Gerard Ankoss to his relative, Henri Delaage in 1882, Gerard was 17 years old.
Links to sources
- ↑ 1 2 Greer D.M. Encyclopedia of Secret Societies. - S. 252. - ISBN 978-5-386-01758-3 .
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Arno de l'Estual. “Joseph Peladan and the Rose + Cross” = “Joséphin Péladan et la Rose + Croix”. - 2010 .-- 249 s. - (collection "[h] ERMETICA"). - ISBN 2-7551-0054-0 .
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Kaye Serge Egyptian Freemasonry of the Charter of Memphis-Mitzraim = La Franc-Maḉonnerie Egyptienne de Memphis-Misra .m. - S. 200. - ISBN 978-5-98882-146-5 .
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Kaye , p. 183.
- ↑ Billi Andre. “Stanislas de Guaita” / Translation from French by V. Nugatov. - 37 p. - ISBN 5-902753-02-3 .
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Greer , p. 253.
- ↑ Billy , p. 176.
- ↑ Kaye , p. 181.
- ↑ "1891 Catholic Church of the Rosicrucian and Aesthetic Order of the Temple and Grail" Milko Bogaard
- ↑ 1 2 3 Cherton Tobias. Gnostic philosophy. From ancient Persia to the present day / per. from English K.A. Zaitseva. - M .: RIPOL classic, 2008. - S. 322. - ISBN 978-5-386-00502-3 .
- ↑ Billy , p. 40–41.
- ↑ 1 2 Billi , p. 142.
- ↑ Cherton, 2008 , p. 324.
- ↑ Greer , p. 328-329.
- ↑ Mike Restiveau (Sar Ignatius, Initiatèur Libre). Papus and the Order of the Martinists . Theurgy website. Date of treatment April 3, 2012. Archived on October 5, 2012.
- ↑ Kaye , p. 211.
- ↑ Mike Restivo (Sar Ignatius, Free Initiator). Order of the Martinists after Papus . Theurgy website. Date of treatment April 3, 2012. Archived on October 5, 2012.
- ↑ Kaye , p. 221-222.
- ↑ Kaye , p. 331-329.
- ↑ 1 2 Kaye , p. 335-357.