_Early Leaders--Literature--Romantic Stories._
We now proceed to speak of some of the more prominent of the Rosicrucian
leaders and teachers, and to call attention to the literature from which
we obtain our only reliable information.
In the sixteenth century lived that extraordinary man Theophrastus
Paracelsus, whose writings exercised a greater influence, perhaps, over
the minds of his fellow creatures than any other author of his time. No
man it is certain had contributed so much as he, to the diffusion of the
Cabbalism, Theosophy and Alchemy which had flooded Germany and flowed over
a greater part of Western Europe. Now it was generally believed that in
the seventeenth century a great and general reformation amongst the human
race would take place, as a necessary fore-runner to the day of judgment.
In connection with this, Paracelsus made several prophecies which took a
very firm hold of the public mind. He declared that the comet which made
its appearance in 1572 was the sign and harbinger of the coming
revolution, and he prophesied that soon after the death of the Emperor
Rudolph, there would be found three treasures that had never been revealed
before that time. In the year 1610 there were published at the same time
three books which led to the foundation of the Rosicrucian order as a
district society. One was called "_Universal Reformation of the Whole Wide
World_." De Quincey summarises its contents thus: "The Seven Wise Men of
Greece, together with M. Cato and Seneca, and a secretary named Mazzonius,
are summoned to Delphi by Apollo, at the desire of the Emperor Justinian,
and there deliberate, on the best mode of redressing human misery. All
sorts of strange schemes are proposed. Thales advised to cut a hole in
every man's breast, and place a little window in it, by which means it
would become possible to look into the heart, to detect hypocrisy and
vice, and thus to extinguish it. Solon proposes an equal partition of all
possessions and wealth. Chilo's opinion is that the readiest way to the
end in view would be to banish out of the world the two infamous and
rascally metals gold and silver. Kleolinlus steps forward as the apologist
of gold and silver, but thinks that iron ought to be prohibited, because
in that case no more wars could be carried on amongst men. Pittacus
insists upon more rigorous laws, which should make virtue and merit the
sole passports to honour; to which, however, Periander objects that there
had never been any scarcity of such laws, nor of princes to execute them,
but scarcity enough of subjects conformable to good laws. The conceit of
Bias, is that nations should be kept apart from each other, and each
confined to its own home; and for this purpose, that all bridges should be
demolished, mountains rendered insurmountable, and navigation totally
forbidden. Cato, who seems to be the wisest of the party, wishes that God
in his mercy would be pleased to wash away all women from the face of the
earth by a new deluge, and at the same time to introduce some new
arrangement for the continuation of the excellent male sex without female
help. Upon this pleasing and sensible proposal the whole company manifest
the greatest displeasure, and deem it so abominable that they unanimously
prostrate themselves on the ground, and devoutly pray to God "that He
would graciously vouchsafe to preserve the lovely race of women" (what
absurdity) "and to save the world from a second deluge!" At length after a
long debate, the counsel of Seneca prevails; which counsel is this--that
out of all ranks a society should be composed having for its object the
general welfare of mankind, and pursuing it in secret. This counsel is
adopted: though without much hope on the part of the deputation, on
account of the desperate condition of 'the Age,' who appears before them
in person, and describes his own wretched state of health."
The second work was the celebrated _Fama Fraternitatis_ of the meritorious
order of the Rosy Cross, addressed to the learned in general, and the
Governors of Europe. Here we may cite De Quincey again: "Christian
Rosycross, of noble descent, having upon his travels into the East and
into Africa learned great mysteries from Arabians, Chaldeans, etc., upon
his return to Germany established, in some place not mentioned, a secret
society composed at first of four--afterwards of eight--members, who dwelt
together in a building called the House of the Holy Ghost, erected by him:
to these persons, under a vow of fidelity and secrecy, he communicated his
mysteries. After they had been instructed, the society dispersed agreeably
to their destination, with the exception of two members, who remained
alternately with the founder. The rules of the order were these:--The
members were to cure the sick without fee or reward. No member to wear a
peculiar habit, but to dress after the fashion of the country. On a
certain day in every year all the members to assemble in the House of the
Holy Ghost, or to account for their absence. Every member to appoint some
person with the proper qualifications to succeed him at his own decease.
The word Rosy-Cross to be their seal, watchword, and characteristic mark.
The association to be kept unrevealed for a hundred years. Christian
Rosycross died at the age of a hundred years. His death was known to the
Society, but not his grave; for it was a maxim of the first Rosicrucians
to conceal their burial places even from each other. New masters were
continually elected into the House of the Holy Ghost, and the Society had
now lasted 120 years. At the end of this period, a door was discovered in
the house, and upon the opening of this door a sepulchral vault. Upon the
door was this inscription: One hundred and twenty years hence I shall open
(_Post CXX. annos patebo_). The vault was a heptagon. Every side was five
feet broad and eight feet high. It was illuminated by an artificial sun.
In the centre was placed, instead of a grave-stone, a circular altar with
a little plate of brass, whereon these words were inscribed: This grave,
an abstract of the whole world, I made for myself while yet living (A. C.
R. C. Hoc Universi compendium vivus mihi sepulchrum feci). About the
margin was--To me Jesus is all in all (Jesus mihi omnia). In the centre
were four figures enclosed in a circle by the revolving legend: Nequaquam
vacuum legis jugum. Libertas Evangelii. Dei gloria intacta. (The empty
yoke of the law is made void. The liberty of the gospel. The unsullied
glory of God). Each of the seven sides of the vault had a door opening
into a chest; which chest, besides the secret books of the order and the
_Vocabularium_ of Paracelsus, contained also mirrors--little
bells--burning lamps--marvellous mechanisms of music, etc., all so
contrived that, after the lapse of many centuries, if the whole order
should have perished, it might be re-established by means of this vault.
Under the altar, upon raising the brazen tablet, the brothers found the
body of Rosycross, without taint or corruption. The right hand held a book
written upon vellum with golden letters: this book which is called T., has
since become the most precious jewel of the society next after the Bible;
and at the end stand subscribed the names of the eight brethren, arranged
in two separate circles, who were present at the death and burial of
Father Rosycross. Immediately after the above narrative follows a
declaration of their mysteries, addressed by the society to the whole
world. They profess themselves to be of the Protestant faith; that they
honour the Emperor and the laws of the Empire; and that the art of gold
making is but a slight object with them." The whole ends with these
words: "Our House of the Holy Ghost though a hundred thousand men should
have looked upon it, is yet destined to remain untouched, imperturbable,
out of sight, and unrevealed to the whole godless world for ever."
Before we proceed to notice at any length the third of the books we have
mentioned, we will turn to some further accounts of the burial place of
the founder of this party, which, though in some respects similar and in
the main stating the same facts, yet, supply other matter both curious and
interesting.
The following story has been quoted by a writer on the Rosicrucians, as
related by Dr. Plot in his History of Staffordshire; a careful examination
of the four copies of that work in the library of the British Museum,
however, has failed to unearth the tale; it is to the following effect. At
the close of a summer's day a countryman was digging a trench in a field
in a valley which was surrounded by dense masses of woodland scenery. It
was shortly after sunset, and the workman wearied with his task was about
to cease his labour; before his pick, however, had given its last blow, it
struck against some hard material a little below the surface of the ground
with sufficient force to cause a bright spark to flash out into the
evening gloom. This, exciting his curiosity, he forgot his fatigue and
again went on with his digging, anxious to ascertain what it was he had
discovered. The stone he had come upon was large and flat, and lay nearly
in the middle of a field at a considerable distance from any of the farms
of the neighbouring country. It was covered with grass and weeds, the
growth of many years and had a large iron ring fixed at one end in a
socket. For some time it proved too much for the countryman's strength,
half an hour's struggling with it failed to remove it from its position,
and it was not till he had rigged up some tackle by the aid of some rope
and a tree that he managed to raise it. He then found it covered a deep
hollow in the ground, wherein after some examination he discovered a stone
staircase of apparently extraordinary depth. His inquisitiveness to know
whither the steps led, and the thought perhaps that he might be the
discoverer of some hidden treasure, gave him more courage than he
naturally possessed, and he descended a few of the stairs, then, after
vainly trying to penetrate into the darkness beneath, paused and looked up
to the sky above. Encouraged by the remains of the sunlight and the
shining planet Venus above him, he resumed his descent. He went, he
supposed a hundred feet underground, when he came upon a square
landing-place with a niche in the wall, then he came to another long
staircase, still descending into darkness. Once more he paused, and looked
up at the now very little bit of sky visible over head. Seeing nothing to
cause any fear, and hopeful of soon being able to unravel the mystery, he
stretched out his hands, and by cautiously feeling the walls, and with
equal caution placing his feet slowly and firmly upon each step, he boldly
went forward and counted in his descent two hundred and twenty steps. He
found himself able to breathe pretty freely, but noticed an aromatic smell
like that of burning incense, which he thought Egyptian. This he noticed
rolling up now and then from beneath, as if from another world, and it
occurred to him that it was from the world of mining gnomes, and that he
was breaking in upon their secrets. Still he went on, in spite of all his
fears, until he was momentarily stopped by a wall in front; turning
sharply to the right, however, he found the way open to him, and
discovered a still deeper staircase, at the foot of which was a steady
though pale light. His alarm at discovering light so far down in the
earth's interior was naturally great, but not great enough to overcome his
curiosity and cause him to retrace his steps, and he once more commenced
descending the mouldering old steps which looked as if they had not been
trodden for ages. Then he thought he heard mysterious rumblings over
head, like the sound of heavy waggons and horses, then all was still
again. Many times he paused and thought he would return, thinking he might
have accidently stumbled upon either the haunt of robbers or the abode of
evil spirits; he stood still for awhile, fairly paralysed with fear. Then
he began to recall where he had been working, he thought of the field
above, the surrounding woods and his native hamlet only a few miles
distant. This somewhat cheered him, but still with a good deal of fear
remaining in his heart, he went down the rest of the stairs, the light
growing brighter at every step. At last, he came upon a square chamber,
built up of large hewn ancient stones. Filled with awe and wonderment, he
found a flagged pavement and a lofty roof rising to a centre, in the
groins of which was a rose beautifully carved in some dark stone or in
marble. The alarm he had hitherto felt was nothing as compared with the
fear which overwhelmed him when, after passing a Gothic stone portal,
light suddenly streamed out over him with a brightness equal to that of
the setting sun, and revealed to him the figure of a man whose face was
hidden as he sat in a studious attitude in a stone chair, reading in a
great book, with his elbows resting on a table like a rectangular altar,
in the light of a large, ancient iron lamp, suspended by a thick chain to
the middle of the roof. The adventurous countryman was unable to repress
the cry that rose to his lips as he gazed upon this strange and unexpected
scene. As the sound of his foot touching the floor resounded through the
chamber, the figure started bolt upright from his seated position, as if
in awful astonishment. He erected his hooded head, and seemed about
angrily to question the intruder. The latter seemed perfectly fascinated
by what he saw, and instead of withdrawing advanced yet another step into
the chamber. Instantly the figure thrust out its arm, as though warning
the intruder off; the hand contained an iron _baton_ and it was raised in
the most threatening attitude, but the unhappy explorer, seemingly unable
to control himself, took a third step forward, and then the image or man
raised his arm high above his head, and with his truncheon striking the
lamp a tremendous blow left the place in utter darkness. Nothing more
followed but a long, low roll of thunder, which gradually died away and
all was still.
The place was afterwards known as the burial place of one of the
brotherhood, whom the people called Rosicrucius, and it is said the
arrangement of the lamp had been made by some Rosicrucian, to shew that he
had discovered the secret of the ever burning lamps of the ancients, but
was resolved that no one should reap the benefit of it.
_The Spectator, No. 379_, gives the following:--"A certain person having
occasion to dig somewhat deep in the ground, where this philosopher
(Rosicrucius) lay interred, met with a small door, having a wall on each
side of it. His curiosity, and the hopes of finding some hidden treasure,
soon prompted him to force open the door. He was immediately surprised by
a sudden blaze of light, and discovered a very fair vault. At the upper
end of it was a statue of a man in armour, sitting by a table, and leaning
on his left arm. He held a truncheon in his right hand, and had a lamp
burning before him. The man had no sooner set one foot within the vault,
than the statue erecting itself from its leaning posture, stood bolt
upright; and upon the fellow's advancing another step, lifted up his
truncheon in its right hand. The man still ventured a third step, when the
statue, with a furious blow, broke the lamp into a thousand pieces, and
left his guest in a sudden darkness. Upon the report of this adventure,
the country people came with lights to the sepulchre, and discovered that
the statue, which was made of brass, was nothing more than a piece of
clockwork; that the floor of the vault was all loose, and underlaid with
several springs, which, upon any man's entering, naturally produced that
which had happened. Rosicrucius, say his disciples, made use of this
method to show the world that he had re-invented the ever burning lamps of
the ancients, though he was resolved no one should reap any advantage from
the discovery."
Respecting the above story given as we have said in the Spectator, No.
379, a writer in Notes and Queries (6th S. 7th vol) says: "This is a very
old tale, and has been printed again and again. The following is an early
version, which was printed by Caxton in 1482; but I give from the edition
printed by Peter de Treveris in 1527. The Polycronicon was originally
written in Latin early in the fourteenth century, and translated into
English in 1357. As the book is chiefly a compilation from old monkish
chronicles, the tale was probably very old even when Higden included it in
the Polycronicon. At any rate it was current long before the date given as
the year of death of the somewhat mythical Christian Rosencrutz. I have
met with several versions of it, varying more or less. In one a man with a
bow and arrow extinguishes the lamp. There are many accounts of these
miraculous lamps discovered burning in tombs hundreds of years after
interment, but having omitted to make notes of them, I am unable to give
references just now.... In Albesterio a place that hyghte Mutatorium
Cesaris were made whyte stoles for Emperours. Also there was a
candlestyke, made of a stone that hyght Albestone whan it was ones steynd
and sette a fire and I sette without thee coude no manne quenche it with
no crafte that men coude devyse, DR. In this maner it myght be that the
Geant Pallas about the yere of oure Lorde a thousand and xi. That yere was
founde in Rome a Geantes body buryed hole and sounde, the space of his
wounde was foure foote longe and a halfe, the length of his body passed
the heyght of the walles, at his hede was founde a lantern brennyng alwaye
that no man coulde quenche with blaste ne with water ne with other crafte,
unto the tyme that there was made a lytell hole under the lyght benethe
that the ayer might enter. Men sayen that Turnus slowgh this Gean Pallas
when Eneas fought for Lanina that was Eneas wyfe. This Geantes Epytaphium
is this. The wrytyug of mynde of hym that lay there was this. Pallas
Enandres sone lyeth here, hym Turnus the knyght with his spere slowghe in
his maner."
One other notice will close this part of the subject.
Although we find in the works of some of the Apologists for the
Rosicrucians extraordinary statements as to the length of life it was
within their power to attain unto (John Higden professes to shew how a man
may live two hundred years) and although some of the fraternity actually
did live a great number of years, we find them at last dying one by one
notwithstanding their professed power to guard against or to relieve
sickness. The founder himself seems to have reached the tolerably advanced
age of a hundred and six (some say a hundred). He then died, and according
to the _Fama_ the place of his burial remained a secret to all except the
two brothers who were with him, and they, according to the agreement to
which they had bound themselves, carried the mystery with them to the
grave. The society still continued to exist, unknown to the world, and
always consisting of eight members, till another one hundred and twenty
years had elapsed, when, according to a tradition among them the grave of
Rosenkrutz was to be discovered, and the brotherhood to be no longer a
mystery to the world. It was about this time that the brothers began to
make some alterations in their building, and thought of removing to
another and more fitting situation the memorial tablet, on which were
inscribed the names of the associates. The plate which was of brass, was
fixed to the wall by means of a nail in its centre, and so firmly did it
hold, that in tearing it away a portion of the plaster came off too and
discovered to them a concealed door. Upon this door being yet farther
cleansed from the incrustation, there appeared above in large letters
Post CXX Annos Patebo.
Great was their delight at so unlooked-for a discovery; but still they so
far restrained their curiosity as not to open the door till the next
morning, when they found themselves in a seven sided vault, each side five
feet wide, and eight feet high. It was lighted by an artificial sun in the
centre of the arched roof, while in the middle of the floor, instead of a
tomb, stood a round altar covered with a small brass plate on which was
this inscription:
A. C. R. C. Hoc, universi compendium, vivus mihi
sepulchrum feci.
About the outer edge was, Jesus mihi omnia.
In the centre were four figures; each enclosed in a circle, with these
circumscriptions:
1. Nequaquam Vacuus.
2. Legis Jugum.
3. Libertas Evangelii.
4. Dei gloria intacta.
Thereupon they all knelt down and returned thanks to heaven for having
made them so much wiser than the rest of the world, a native trait that
adds not a little to the verisimilitude of the story. Then they divided
the vault into three parts--the roof, or heaven--the wall, or the
sides--and the ground, or pavement. The first and last were according to
the seven sides divided into triangles, while every side was divided into
ten squares with figures and sentences, to be explained to the newly
initiated. Each of these again, had a door opening upon a closet, wherein
were stored up sundry rare articles, such as secret books of the order,
the vocabulary of Paracelsus, and other things of the same nature, which
it was allowable to impart even to the profane. In one, they discovered
the life and itinerary of their founder; in another they lighted upon
mirrors possessed of different qualities, a little bell, burning lamps,
and a variety of curious matters, intended to help in rebuilding the
order, which after the lapse of many centuries was to fall into decay.
Curiosity to see their founder induced them to push aside the altar, when
they came upon a strong brass plate, and this too being removed,
"Before their eyes the wizard lay
As if he had not been dead a day."
Moreover, like the celebrated character described in these lines, he had a
volume under his arm, which proved to be of vellum with letters of gold,
and at the end of it, in two separate circles, were the names of eight
brethren who had assisted at their founder's interment. Next to the Bible,
the Rosicrucians valued this book beyond any portion of their inheritance,
yet it is not said whether they took away any of these rarities, or left
the dead man in quiet possession of his treasures.[4]