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INTRODUCTION
In the popular books of to-day, dealing with the origin of religion, we
find it stated that they originated from fear. It is described how our
ancestors, while in a savage state, and being unacquainted with the revelations
made by modern science, saw the lightning flash, and heard the noise of thunder
and watched other natural phenomena, whose origin they could not explain, and
how they came to the logical conclusion that such things must be produced by
some extra cosmic supernatural and intellectual power, which might some day
take a notion to destroy their possessions; and which must, therefore, be
flattered and propitiated so that it might be kept in a good humor.
Such a scientific explanation of the origin of religion and the belief
in God may satisfy the speculating brain of the rationalist and thinker, who,
living entirely in the moonshine of his own imagination has no perception for
the light of that knowledge which belongs to the spirit of man; but such a
theory will not satisfy the heart in which there is still a spark of the divine
life, and which, therefore, feels the presence of a universal and higher power
that is not a product of nature, but superior to her. A religion having such a
merely logical origin would be truly the religion of the devil, because it
would be thoroughly false. It would be merely a system teaching how God may be
cheated and eternal justice be made to come to naught.
True religion has nothing to do with fear nor with logical speculation,
and its true origin rests in the fundamental relation which the human soul
bears to the divine origin of the spiritual power by which she is inhabited. It
is the divine spirit in man itself, recognizing and through the instrumentality
of man the presence of the universal spirit in nature. This divine power is
truly "occult," because it cannot be perceived by any external means,
neither can its existence be logically proved to those who are not capable to
feel it; it will for ever remain a mystery to the "Adam" of earth;
because it is divine and can therefore be intellectually known to man only when
he has entered into a state of divinity.
Nevertheless, it is a quality inherent in the nature of man that he
wishes to know intellectually that whose presence he intuitively feels, and
there have, therefore, at all times been men curious to know the nature of God,
and attempted to break by their intellectual efforts a hole through the veil
that covers the sanctuary of the great mystery, so that they may peep through
it, and gratify their curiosity. From the vagaries of such speculators,
visionaries and pseudo-philosophers has originated a false system of theology,
mysticism, and superstition, which is even to-day often regarded as being
Occultism and Theosophy.
The soul of man stands in the same relation to that spiritual power that
fills the universe, as the flowers of the field to the light of the terrestrial
sun. A plant deprived of life will sicken and die, and a soul in which the
spirit of holiness does not exist will become degraded lower than the soul of
the animals; because animals are not given to arguing; they act according to
the laws of their nature, while the possession of an intellect enables man to
act unnaturally, and in opposition to divine law.
But there have also been other men, who, by remaining natural and
obedient to divine law, have grown into a state of spirituality superior to the
merely intellectual state, and in the course of their interior enfoldment,
their inner senses have become opened, so that they could not only intuitively
feel, but also spiritually perceive this light of the spirit. Such men are the
true Mystics, Rosicrucians, and Adepts, and with them the historian and
antiquarian has nothing to do; because they are beyond his reach of
investigation.
A "History of Rosicrucians" could, at best, be a history of
certain persons who "were supposed to have been spiritually
enlightened." It would have to remain for ever uncertain whether a person
mentioned in such a "history" had really been a Rosicrucian or not;
because that which constitutes a man a saint and a sage does not belong to this
earth and cannot be examined by mortal men; it is that part of man of which the
Bible speaks when it is written, "We live upon the earth; but our soul is
in heaven."
External investigation can only deal with external things; that whose
existence depends on a form can deal only with forms; but all forms are merely
fictitious to him who recognizes by the power of his spiritual perception the
truth which the form represents. The whole of nature is an expression of truth;
but there are few who can realize the truth expressed in nature. We are all
more or less caricatured images of the truth which we are originally intended
to represent. As long as we have ourselves merely a fictitious existence, owing
to the non-recognition of the truth within our own selves, we merely know the
caricature which we represent, but not our true, real self.
Wisdom, as a principle, is inconceivable unless it becomes manifest in
the wise, and only the wise are capable to recognize it. A man without
knowledge knows nothing. It is not man in his aspect as a being without any
principle who can know any principle whatever; it is always the principle
itself that recognizes itself in other forms. Thus, if a person wants to know
the truth, the truth must be alive in him; if there is no truth in him, he can
perceive no truth, neither within himself nor in external nature.
For ever the truth is crucified between two "thieves" called
"superstition" and "scepticism," and if we see only one of
the crucified thieves, we are liable to mistake him for the truth; but the two
forms of the thieves are distorted, or, to express it more correctly, the truth
is distorted in them. Only when we are capable to recognize the straight form
of the Savior hanging between the two distorted thieves, will we see the
difference and know where to search for the Redeemer.
For those in whom the truth has not yet become a living power,
fictitious forms are necessary to show them the way, but the majority of the
ignorant see only the fiction; there being no truth within themselves, there is
nothing to perceive the truth in the form. For this reason the "Secret
Symbols of the Rosicrucians" will for ever remain "secret" to
all who have not the living truth within their own hearts, and they will not
comprehend them, in spite of all the explanations produced.
These, however, in whom the truth struggles to become alive and who are
striving not merely for the gratification of their curiosity, but who love the
truth for its own sake and without any personal consideration, may be aided a
great deal by the study of the books of the Rosicrucians and their secret
symbols, in the same way as a traveler in a foreign country may be aided by
those who have travelled there before him and know the way. They can indicate
to him the road through the desert and the places where sweet water may be
found, but they cannot carry him, he is to do the walking himself.
Divine wisdom is not of man's making, neither is it invented by him. There
is no other way to obtain it than by receiving it willingly within one's own
heart. If it enters there, then will the storm of contending opinions subside,
and the sea of thought be as clear as a mirror in which we may see the truth.
Then will the truth itself become strong in ourselves, and we shall know God,
not by reading a description of Him in books but in and through His own power,
or, to express it in the words of the Bible, we shall attain knowledge of Him
"by worshipping Him in Spirit and in Truth."
Like the allegorical language of the Bible and other religious books,
the Rosicrucian writings are utter nonsense and incomprehensible, if taken in
an external sense and applied from a material point of view. Merely external
reasoning, far from being an aid in their understanding, is rather an obstacle
in the way; but to him who looks at them with the understanding that comes from
the spirit, they are full of divine wisdom.
The Rosicrucians say:
"A person who knows Divine truth has attained the highest and
desires nothing more; for there can be nothing higher than the attainment of
the truth. In comparison with this treasure, worldly possessions sink into
insignificance: for he who possesses the highest has no desire for that which
is low; he who knows the reality does not care for illusions."
Scientific and philosophical speculations in regard to what may possibly
be true are useless to him who feels and perceives the truth; he does not need
to speculate about that which he already. sees and knows. He does not require
great riches, for the wants of his physical form are few and simple, and
moreover, by the action of the spirit within, radiating in an outward
direction, the material principles composing his physical form become more and
more sublimated and etherealized, and independent of the necessities of the
material plane; until at last, having stripped off the last sheath of the gross
and visible form, and having made that principle conscious which gives life
within the visible inner body, he may live entirely in the latter, invisible to
mortal eyes, independent of material conditions, an ethereal spirit surrounded
by indescribable beauties, in possession of powers of whose existence mortal
man does not dream — an ethereal spirit, but nevertheless a real and living
man. (1)
And, again, the Rosicrucians say of him who has tasted of the living
water of truth, the true "Elixir of Life":
"Blessed is he who is above want and poverty, above disease and
death, who Cannot be touched by that which gives pain, who does not require
another roof over his head than the sky, no other bed than the earth, no other
nutriment than the air, and who is above all those wants for which mortals are
craving." (2)
"God humiliates the vain and exalts the humble. He punishes the
proud with contempt; but to the modest He sends His angels with consolation. He
throws the evil disposed into a wilderness; but to the kind-hearted He opens
the portals of heaven." (3)
"Avoid the books of the Sophists; they are full of errors; for the
foundation upon which their knowledge rests is their fancy. Enter the realm of
the real, and divide with us the treasures which we possess. We invite you, not
by our own choice, but by the power of the Divine Spirit whose servants we
are." (4)
"What does the animal know about intellectual pleasures? what does
the Sophist know about the joys of the spirit? Would it not be a precious thing
if we could live and think and feel as if we had been living and thinking and
feeling ever since the beginning of the world, and were to continue thus unto
its end? Would it not be delightful to know all the secrets of Nature and to
read that book in which is recorded everything that has happened in the past,
or which will exist in the future? Would you not rejoice to possess the power
to attract the highest instead of being attracted by that which is low, and to
have pure spirits instead of animals assembling around you?" (5)
Are such powers attainable by man?
It would be useless to attempt to prove it to those who have no desire
to attain them; and even if it were proved, what would it benefit those who are
poor to prove to them that there are others in possession of treasures which
for the former do not exist? Can the existence of powers be proved to one who
has no capacity for their perception or comprehension? Even a miracle would
prove nothing except that something unusual and unexplained had occurred.
The Fama Fraternitatis says:
"The impossibility to reveal such secrets to those who are not
sufficiently spiritually developed to receive them is the cause that many
misconceptions and prejudices have existed among the public in regard to the
Rosicrucians. Grotesque and fabulous stories, whose origin can only be traced
to the ignorance or malice of those who invented them, have been circulated and
grown in intensity and absurdity as they travelled through the ranks of the gossipers.
Falsehoods cannot be eradicated without injuring the roots of the truth,
and evil intentions grow useful to contradict the false statements made by the
ignorant or willful deceiver; but what is the testimony of the blind worth when
they speak of what they believe they have seen and what value can be attached
to the statements of the deaf when they describe what they believe they have
heard? What does the untruthful know of the truth, the godless of God, the
foolish of wisdom, and the unbeliever of faith?
They may think that they are right, nevertheless they are wrong; they
may accuse others of harboring illusions, while they live in illusions
themselves. Envy, hate, jealousy, bigotry and superstition are like colored
glasses, which cause him who looks through them to see nothing in its true
aspect, but everything in colored light."
Thus it appears that the "Rosicrucians," in speaking of their
society, means something very different from any terrestrial and external
organization of persons calling themselves, for some reason or other,
"Rosicrucians"; but of a spiritual union, a harmony of divine and
conspritual, but, nevertheless, individual powers, such as the angels are
supposed to be, and which are not concerned in any history connected with the
tomfooleries of external life.
It is of that spiritual "association" of which they speak when
they say:
« Our community has existed ever since the first
day of creation, when God spoke the word, 'Let there be light,' and it will
continue to exist till the end of time. It is the society of the children of
light, whose bodies are formed of light, and who live in the light for ever. In
our school we are instructed by Divine wisdom, the heavenly bride, whose will
is free, and who comes to him whom she selects.
The mysteries which we know embrace everything that can possibly be
known in regard to God, Nature, and Man. Every sage that has ever existed has
graduated in our school, in which he could have learned true wisdom. We have
among our members such as do not inhabit this globe; our disciples are
distributed all over the universe. They all study one book, and follow only one
method of studying it.
Our place of meeting is the temple of the Holy Spirit pervading all
nature, easily to be found by the Elect, but for ever hidden from the eyes of
the vulgar. Our secrets cannot be sold for money; but they are free to everyone
who is capable to receive them. Our secrecy is not caused by an unwillingness
to give; but by the incapacity to receive on the part of those that ask for
instruction.
There is only one eternal truth; there is only one fountain of love.
Love cannot be given, it must be born in the human heart. Wherever the
quickening takes place, we attend to the birth of divine love. We are in
possession of a light that illumines the profoundest depths of the darkness and
enables us to know the deepest of mysteries. We have a fire by which we are
nourished and by which wonders may be performed in nature.
Everything in this world is subject to our will, because our will is one
and identical with the law; nevertheless, our will is free and bound by no law.
Do you wish to become a member of our society? If so, enter within your
own heart and hearken to the voice of the Silence. Seek for the Master within
yourself, and listen to his instructions. Learn to know the Divinity that seeks
to manifest itself within your soul. Throw away your imperfections and become
perfect in God. »
Footnotes
1. It will readily be perceived that all this refers
to the "Inner Man," and not to his mortal physical frame. It is
neither the physical body with its external senses, nor the perishing mind of
man which can know divine truth. It is only divine truth in man that can know
its own self. No mail can attain true knowledge of any spiritual power, unless
that power becomes alive in him and he identified with it. Occultism is not a
question of what one should know, nor of what one should do; but of what one
must be. If the inner man has become truly spiritual, not merely in his
imagination, but in his will; then his awakened spirit will penetrate even
through the physical form and change its nature in the same sense as darkness
is consumed by light.
2. All this refers not to the man of terrestrial flesh; but to him who
has been regenerated in the life of the spirit. The elementary body of man is
not above disease and death; nor above that which gives pain. That body
requires to be sheltered against the elements whereof it is made; and needs
terrestrial food; but the man of the celestial kingdom is free. His home is as
wide as his thoughts can reach, and his nutriment is the "Manna" from
heaven.
3. "God" (according to Jacob Boehme) is the will of divine
wisdom. He who rises up in his self-conceit will fall; because he will be full
of his delusive knowledge, and the will of the Eternal cannot awaken divine
wisdom in him. True humility does not consist in abject fear; but in the
highest sense of dignity, such as can be felt only by him who feels that God is
in and with him.
4. The "sophists" are those sceptical inquirers who diligently
examine the external shell of the fruit that grows upon the tree of knowledge;
without knowing that there is a kernel within the fruit. They persuade
themselves that there is no kernel, and imagine that those who are capable to
perceive by the power of the spirit the light that shines from the interior
fountain, are dreamers; while they themselves little know that their own life
is merely a sleep and their fancied knowledge a dream.
5. The spirit of man is not of this world; it belongs to eternity. There
never was a time when the spirit of man was not; even since the beginning of
creation; neither is its presence limited to this planet Earth. He who succeeds
in merging his consciousness with that of the divine spirit that overshadows
his personality, and which is his own real self, will know his past forms of
existence and set the future; but the animal principles in man cannot partake
of that state; they die and enter again into the Chao!, the storehouse for the
production of forms.
(In the Pronaos of the
Temple of Wisdom, chapter 1)
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