Gerard Encausse And Secret Societies

Gerard Encausse (July 13, 1865 - 25 October 1916), whose esoteric pseudonym was Papus, was the Spanish-born French physician, hypnotist, and popularizer of occultism, who founded the modern Martinist Order.

Levi, Tarot, and the Kabbalah

Encausse's early readings in tarot and the lore of the Kabbalah in translation was inspired by the occult writings of Eliphas Levi, whose translation of the "Nuctemeron of Apollonius of Tyana" printed as a supplement to Dogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie (1855), provided Encausse with his nom de plume: "Papus" means "physician."

1891: l'Ordre des Superieurs Inconnus

In 1891, Encausse claimed to have come into the possession of the original papers of Martinez Paschalis, or de Pasqually (c. 1700-1774), and therewith founded an Order of Martinists called l'Ordre des Superieurs Inconnus. He claimed to have been given authority in the Rite of Saint-Martin by his friend Henri Vicomte de Laage, who claimed that his maternal grandfather had been initiated into the order by Saint-Martin himself, and who had attempted to revive the order in 1887. The Martinist Order was to become a primary focus for Encausse, and continues today as one of his most enduring legacies.

1895 - 1888: The Golden Dawn; Kabbalistic Order of the Rose-Croix

In March 1895, Encausse joined the Ahathoor Temple of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn in Paris.

Although Encausse claimed as his "spiritual master" the mysterious magician and healer known as "le Maitre Philippe" (Philippe Nizier), his first actual teacher in the intellectual aspects of occultism was the marquis Joseph Alexandre Saint-Yves d'Alveydre (1842 - 1910). Saint-Yves had inherited the papers of one of the great founders of French occultism, Antoine Fabre d'Olivet (1762 - 1825), and it was probably Saint-Yves who introduced Papus to the marquis Stanislas de Guaita (1861 - 1897).

In 1888, Encausse, Saint-Yves and de Guaita joined with Josephin Peladan and Oswald Wirth to found the Rosicrucian Kabbalistic Order of the Rose-Croix.

1908 - 1913: Encausse, Reuss and Paramasonry

Encausse never became a regular (Grand Orient) Freemason. Despite this, he organized what was announced as an "International Masonic Conference" in Paris on June 24, 1908, and at this conference he first met Theodor Reuss, and the two men apparently exchanged patents:

Reuss elevated Encausse as X° of the Ordo Templi Orientis as well as giving him license to establish a "Supreme Grand Council General of the Unified Rites of Ancient and Primitive Masonry for the Grand Orient of France and its Dependencies at Paris." For his part, Encausse assisted Reuss in the formation of the O.T.O. Gnostic Catholic Church as a child of l'Eglise Gnostique de France, thus forming the E.G.C. within the tradition of French neo-gnosticism.

When John Yarker died in 1913, Encausse was elected as his successor to the office of Grand Hierophant (international head) of the Antient and Primitive Rites of Memphis and Mizraim.

Downloadable books (free):

Jantina Helena Looijenga - Runes Around The North Sea And On The Continent
Aleister Crowley - Tanhauser A Story Of All Time
Wouter Hanegraaff - Dictionary Of Gnosis And Western Esotericism
Aleister Crowley - Temperance A Tract For The Times
Gerald Massey - Gerald Massey Lectures

The Alchemical Keys To Masonic Ritual

Book: The Alchemical Keys To Masonic Ritual by Timothy Hogan

This is an excellent book that all Masons should be required to read after completing the Master Masons degree. This book explains the true meaning of many of the allegorical charges in Masonic ritual. Once a Mason realizes there is more to the story they can begin their Philosophical journey and become a true, "lover of truth".

This is the first book which establishes a direct link between the rituals of Freemasonry and the practice of both chemical and spiritual alchemy. Albert Pike understood that the symbolic degrees of Freemasonry contained alchemical secrets, but he never put the whole pattern together and showed how. This book shows these connections for the first time. This book is a must for any Freemason who wants to understand the secret meanings behind the Symbolic "Blue Lodge" ritual.

This book should be up on the shelf with every other alchemical book you own. It is essential reading for the alchemist and the mason to understand the corillations between the two. Not only is it incredibly insightful but each page is meaty in content. For those old masons trapped in business-meeting-masonry, this is essential to Understanding the craft. This is ancient knowledge for the NEWMASONRY. A fine read by one of the best alchemy teachers out there today!

Buy Timothy Hogan's book: The Alchemical Keys To Masonic Ritual

Downloadable books (free):

Lisa Mcsherry - The Alchemy Of Abundance Practical Money Magic
Solomonic Grimoires - The Greater Key Of Solomon Part 2
Arthur Edward Waite - The Pictorial Key To The Tarot
Anton Szandor Lavey - The Satanic Rituals
Vovim Baghie - The Grand Satanic Ritual

The Hermetic Brotherhood Of Light

The Hermetic Brotherhood of Light was a mystical society which claimed descent from the late 18th century Austrian Masonic/Rosicrucian body known as the Fratres Lucis. The Fratres Lucis, also known as the Asiatic Brethren or Initiated Brethren of the Seven Cities in Asia, was derived from the earlier German Order of the Golden and Rosy Cross. The Hermetic Brotherhood of Light also appears to have had connections with the Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor, which was a mystical society which surfaced publicly in England in 1884 under the auspices of Max Theon (AKA Louis-Maximilian Bimstein, 1850-1927). The origins of the H.B. of L. are unclear, but there is some evidence linking it with the Brotherhood of Luxor, which was involved in the founding of the Theosophical Society as well as with the aforementioned Fratres Lucis; and with the latter's 19th century English spiritualist namesake.
Born in Poland, Theon travelled widely in his youth. In Cairo, he became a student of a Coptic magician named Paulos Metamon. Theon came to England in 1870, where he recruited the violin-maker Peter Davidson (1842-1916) to establish an "Outer Circle" of the H.B. of L. They were joined in 1883 by Thomas H. Burgoyne (AKA Thomas Dalton, 1855-1895), who later wrote a book summarizing the basic teachings of the H.B. of L., titled The Light of Egypt. The function of this "Outer Circle" of the H.B. of L. was to offer a Correspondence course on practical occultism; which set it apart from the Theosophical Society. Its curriculum included a number of selections from the writings of Hargrave Jennings and Paschal Beverly Randolph.

Downloadable books (free):

Jean Despagnet - The Hermetic Arcanum The Secret Work Of The Hermetic Philosophy
Arthur Edward Waite - The Hermetic Museum
Austin Osman Spare - The Zoetic Grimoire Of Zos
Anonymous - The Secret Book Of Artephius
Mark Mirabello - The Odin Brotherhood