Theos-Talk Archives (December 2006 Message tt00615)

Carl,
 
You said in a posting yesterday that the authentic Egyptian Rite was not established at Lyon by Cagliostro.   In  writing this, if this was not a joke,  you are but sharing with us your  absence of knowledge.   
 
The  “Centre International de Recherches et d’Etudes Martinistes”,  in France,  published in 1995 the bye-laws of  the  “Lodge of the Triumphant Wisdom”:   “Status et règlement de la R. L. De la Sagesse triomphant”.  
 
The  document explains right in  its first lines that this lodge of Egyptian  Masonry was founded “in  the Orient of  Lyon”  by the ‘Great Copt’  (Cagliostro).   It says that the lodge of the Triumphant Wisdom is the mother lodge, the  “loge mère de la Haute Maçonnerie égyptienne pour L’Orient ert pour  l’Occident, constitué telle et fondée à l’orient de Lyon par le Grand Copte [sic] , foundateur et grand maitre de la Haute Maçonnerie égyptienne dans toutes les parties orientales et occidentales du globe.” (1) 
 
This is a most obvious and well-documented  fact in the history of Occultism.   Nearly anyone who heard about Cagliostro is aware of that. Robert Amadou, in his book “Cagliostro et le rituel de la Maçonnerie égyptienne”, writes: 
 
“At the same year 1784,  the Great Copt established at Lyon the Egyptian Masonry...”
 
Or, if you prefer: 
 
“La même année 1784, le Grand  Cophte établit à Lyon la Maçonnerie égyptienne, son ordre en règle ...” (2) 
 
You should take a look at the Ritual of the Egyptian Masonry, or  “Rituel de la Maçonnerie Egyptienne, annoté par le Docteur Marc Haven et precedé d’une introduction de Daniel Nazir”, Édition des Cahiers Astrologiques, Nice, 1947, 143 pp. 
 
Later on C. W. Leadbeater made some idiotic thing – a “mummery” as HPB would probably say –  under the name of “Egyptian Rite”. 
 
As to Cagliostro, you should study  his  great biography  written by Marc Haven, a copy of which you can get from an old edition available  at the Library of the Adyar TS, in India;  or you may buy a more recent edition in France: “CAGLIOSTRO, Le Maître Unconnu”, Dr. Marc Haven,   Editions Dervy, Paris, 1995,  320 pp.  
 
There are several other works in  my home library on Cagliostro, including the Vatican  process against him.  In  English language, one has  W.R.H. Trowbridge’s book  “Cagliostro” which was published by Kessinger Publishing, LCC, USA. 
 
The similarities between the lives of  Cagliostro and HPB are great, if not remarkable;   and I have a record of quite a few of them.    
 
In August 1885,   HPB wrote  to Mr. Sinnett  that for some reason a disciple of the Masters had recently gone to the old Vatican  prison where Cagliostro was held: 
 
“In Rome, Darbargiri Nath went to the prison of Cagliostro at the Fort ‘Sant Angelo’, and remained in the terrible hole for more than an hour. What he did there, would give Mr. Hodgson the ground work for another ‘scientific’ report if he could only investigate the fact.” (3)   
 
A Messenger in the end of 18th century, and a Messenger in the end of 19th century. 
 
Regards,    Carlos. 
 
 
NOTES:
 
(1) See the periodical publication  “L’Esprit des Choses”,  edited by the “Centre International de Recherches et d’Etudes Martinistes”, Guerigny, France,  number 4, 1995, p. 120. 
 
(2) “Cagliostro et le rituel de la Maçonnerie égyptienne”, Robert Amadou,  “L’Internel”, Les Édition SEPP,  1996, Paris, 118 pp., see p. 11.  
 
(3) “The Letters of  H. P. Blavatsky to A. P. Sinnett”, TUP, Pasadena, CA, USA,  1973, 404 pp., see Letter XLVI,  p. 110. 


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