Today on the death-day of Cagliostro… “…It is important that we should speak about the higher degrees of Freemasonry, because this manner of instruction sets itself special tasks, certain aspects of which will be discussed in the near future. We are dealing, in the main, with a special rite, that is called the combined rite of Memphis and Misraim (1)…
First of all, it is to be borne in mind that the whole of the masonic higher degrees trace back to a personality often spoken about, but equally very much misunderstood. He was particularly misunderstood by nineteenth century historians, who have no idea of the difficult situations an occultist can meet in life. This personality is the ill-famed and little understood Cagliostro.
The so-called Count Cagliostro (2) in whom a high spiritual individuality concealed itself which was recognised in its true nature only by the highest initiates, attempted originally to bring Freemasonry in London to a higher stage. For during the last third of the eighteenth century, Freemasonry had fairly well reached the state that I have described. He did not succeed in London at that time. He then tried in Russia, and also at The Hague. Everywhere he was unsuccessful, for very definite reasons. Then, however, he was successful in Lyons, forming an occult masonic lodge of the Philalethes [Searchers after Truth] out of a group of local masons, which was called the ‘Lodge of Triumphing Wisdom’. The purpose of this Lodge was specified by Cagliostro. What you can read about it is, however, nothing but the work of ignorant people. What can be said about it is only an indication. Cagliostro was concerned with two things: firstly, with instructions enabling one to produce the so-called Philosopher's Stone; secondly, with creating an understanding of the mystic pentagram. I can only give you a hint of the meaning of these two things. They are not to be taken merely symbolically, they are based on real facts. The Philosopher's Stone has a specific purpose, which was stated by Cagliostro; it is meant to prolong human life to a span of 5,527 years.(3) To a freethinker that appears laughable. In fact, however, it is possible, by means of special training, to prolong life indefinitely by learning to live outside the physical body. Anyone, however, who imagined that no death, in the conventional sense of the word, could strike down an adept, would have quite a false view of the matter. So, whoever imagined that an adept could not be hit and killed by a falling roof slate, would also be wrong. To be sure, that would usually only occur if the adept allowed it. We are not dealing here with physical death, but with the following. Physical death is only an apparent occurrence for him who has understood the Philosopher's Stone for himself, and has learned to separate it…He lays aside the physical body in the same way that one takes off a raincoat, and he puts a new body on just as one puts a new suit on… The second lesson was the knowledge of the Pentagram. That is the ability to distinguish the five bodies of the human being, one from another…
Those pupils of Cagliostro who had followed his methods would thereby have achieved what some Rosicrucians achieved, who had basically undergone a training with the same orientation. They were in a school of the great European adepts, who taught that the five bodies were realities, and not to remain as mere concepts. That is called ‘Knowing the Pentagram’ and ‘Moral Rebirth’… Long before catastrophe broke over him, Cagliostro had succeeded in starting schools in Paris, Belgium, St. Petersburg and a few other places in Europe, in addition to the one in Lyons…Thus, Count Cagliostro at least had an important influence on occult masonry in Europe before ending his days in the Vatican prison in Rome… I remarked earlier that the French Revolution arose out of the secret societies of the occultists, and if these currents were investigated further, they would lead back to the school of the adepts.
It may be that what Mabel Collins depicted in her novel Flita is hard to understand. In it she describes, rather grotesquely, how an adept has the World Chessboard in front of him in a secret place, and lets the pieces play, and how he, so to speak, controls the Karma of a continent upon one very simple little board. It does not quite take place as it is described there, but something on a much greater scale than that does actually happen, of which what is described in Flita gives only a distorted picture. Now the French Revolution certainly proceeded from such things as this. There is a well-known story contained in the writings of the Countess d'Adhémar, one of the ladies-in-waiting to Marie-Antoinette. It related that before the outbreak of the French Revolution, the Countess d’Adhémar, received a visit from the Count of St. Germain. He wanted to be presented to the Queen and to beg audience of the King. Louis XVI's minister, however, was the enemy of the Count of St. Germain, who therefore was not allowed into the King's presence. But he described to the Queen with great accuracy and detail the major perils which were looming ahead. Regrettably, however, his warnings were ignored. It was on that occasion that he uttered the great saying which was based on truth: ‘They who sow the wind shall reap the whirlwind’ and he added that he had uttered this saying millenia previously, and it had been repeated by Christ. Those were words which were unintelligible to the ordinary person.
But the Count of St. Germain was right. I will only add a few more touches which are quite correct. In books about the Count of St. Germain you can read that he died in 1784 at the court of the Landgrave of Hessen, who later became one of the most advanced German Freemasons. Landgrave nursed him until the end. But the Countess d'Adhémar recounts in her memoirs that he appeared to her long after the year 1784, and that she saw him six more times long after that. In reality he was at that time, in 1790, with some Rosicrucians in Vienna, and said, which is perfectly true, that he was obliged to retire to the Orient for the span of 85 years, and that after that time people would again become aware of his activity in Europe.
1875 is the year of the founding of the Theosophical Society. These things are all connected… In the school founded by the Landgrave of Hessen, also, there were two main concerns: the Philosopher's Stone and the Knowledge of the Pentagram. The Freemasonry founded by the Landgrave of Hessen at that time continued to exist in a rather diluted form. In fact, the whole of Freemasonry, as I have described it, is called the Egyptian rite, the rite of Memphis and Misraim. The latter traces its origin back to King Misraim who came from Assyria—from the Orient—and, after the conquest of Egypt, was initiated into the Egyptian mysteries. These are indeed the mysteries which originate from ancient Atlantis. An unbroken tradition exists from that time. Modern Freemasonry is only a continuation of what was established then in Egypt – from Atlantis…
It is correct to say that humanity will be astonished by some of the discoveries which will be made in the near future. But they will be rather premature discoveries and will thereby cause some havoc.
The task of the Anthroposophical Society consists mainly in preparing people for such things. Certain things will mature in the near future and therefore we shall speak about them. This makes it necessary to see the need of a step by step advance in the gaining of knowledge. This step by step advance is therefore rightly emphasised by those who wish to revive the Misraim and Memphis Rite at the present time… ~Rudolf Steiner, The Temple Legend, GA 93, Part I, lecture 9. The Essence and Task of Freemasonry from the Point of View of Spiritual Science III
1. According to legend the Misraim Service originated with a man called Ormuz, who was converted to Christianity by St. Mark in the year 46. The Crusaders carried this masonic knowledge with them from the Holy Land founding a Grand Lodge in Scotland. The legend derives the name Misraim, one of the sons of Ham. He came to Egypt, and called it after his name (Misraim or Mizraim—the old mystery name for Egypt). The teaching about Isis, Osiris, Typhon, etc., came from him, cf. Schuster: Die geheimen Gessellschaften, Verbindungen und Orden (Volume 2, Leipzig 1906). According to Heckethorn: (Secret Societies, Book 8, Chapter 20), the Egyptian masonry was founded by Cagliostro. The Rite of Misraim is attributed (Heckethorn, Book 8, Chapter 10) to a foundation in Milan. 2. Count Cagliostro, allegedly identical with the Sicilian Joseph Balsamo—a fact which he himself, however, always vigorously denied—died in the Vatican prison 26 August in 1795. He is regarded, along with the Count of St. Germain, as one of the most controversial figures of the eighteenth century. In an account of his life by Francois Ribadeau Dumas: (Cagliostro, Allen and Unwin 1967) the attempt was made to put the record straight. For instance, it was quoted out of the Protocol of the trial by the Inquisition that ‘it has not been possible to find a single witness among Cagliostro's accusers who had known Balsamo.’ Furthermore, a passage is quoted from the book by Cagliostro's ‘learned historian,’ Dr. Marc Haven, Le Maitre inconnu Cagliostro: ‘No one has proved that Balsamo and Cagliostro are one and the same person; neither Morands, nor Goethe, not the Commissary Fontaine, nor even the trial of the Holy Inquisition have produced a document which precludes all doubt.’ 3. In the notes of Marie Steiner von Sivers it is said to be 5,530 years. According to Heckethorn (Book 8, Chapter 20), 5,557 years (see note 13). Ribadeau Dumas (in the work quoted above) states that Cagliostro left many works behind him, among which is one entitled: The Art of prolonging Life. All of them, apart from his Egyptian Ritual, have disappeared. As Ribadeau Dumas says: ‘If they haven't been burned, they must reside in the Vatican archives. Let us hope that, in the light of the new ideas of the ecumenical movement and reconciliation with the “separated Brethren”, the Vatican library will one day release these curious documents to which Cagliostro so often referred and through which he might be vindicated.’
~ jbconradoIn preparation for the Michaelmas Season, Please join us on the Autumnal Equinox Sunday 22 September 2024 fro1 PM – 2:30 PM Central Time For an online Community gathering employing Head, Hands & Heart, including Leading Thoughts shared by Mysteria Mystica Americana (MA) Go to Upcoming Events page to register
Here is a link to recordings of our past offerings
Michaelmas on Zinniker Farm - Saturday 28 September 2024Stay tuned for details
4 - 6 October 2024 Annual Southeast Biodynamic Conference - Celebrating the 100-year anniversary of biodynamic agriculture. Hosted by Jeff Poppen ‘the Barefoot Farmer’ Long Hungry Creek Farm in Red Boiling Springs, TN
Join us at the Goetheanum for the performance of Rudolf Steiner’s Four Mystery Dramas 26-31 December 2024
If you want to support the Spiritualization of the Earth thru the Biodynamic Farming done on Zinniker Farm, you are invited to become a paid subscriber, with all donations going directly to the farm
Greetings Friend, you currently a free subscriber to Cognitive Ritual. Thank you for receiving my workings freely offered. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription. ALL donations go to support Zinniker Farm - The oldest Biodynamic Farm in America! Together we can spiritualize the Universe. XOX ~hag
|
Monday, 26 August 2024
Cagliostro
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment