The Real History Of The Rosicrucians

Description

The Real History Of The Rosicrucians is a book by British mystic Arthur Edward Waite, first published in 1887. Waite provides complete translations of all the texts associated with the Rosicrucians, including the Fama Fraternitatis, the Confessio Fraternitatis, and the Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosencreutz. The Chemical Wedding, the most extensive of the texts, is an alchemical allegory that reads like a fever dream. Although the authorship of these documents is uncertain, they are believed to have been written by Johann Valentin Andreas, a German theologian and writer. Waite also examines Rosicrucian literature from various centuries, including the works of authors like Michael Maier, Robert Fludd, Thomas Vaughan, and John Heydon. Heydon's work, Voyage to the Land of the Rosicrucians, which describes an expedition to a far-off land inhabited by Rosicrucians, is included in its entirety. Waite concludes his study with a look at a 19th-century organization that claimed to be affiliated with the Rosicrucians, a group that included Hargrave Jennings as a member. Jennings wrote a book titled The Rosicrucians, their Rites and Mysteries, which Waite critiques thoroughly, given its misleading title and focus on phallicism. Jennings' work contradicts the notion of the Rosicrucians being celibate, a fact that Waite highlights. Additionally, Waite debunks two 'historical' stories cited by Jennings, namely the subterranean sepulcher and the immortal Venetian, which have been used by other authors as factual accounts.

This book has 128,787 words, 199 pages in the PDF version, and was originally published in 1887.

Production notes: This ebook of The Real History Of The Rosicrucians was published by Global Grey on the 19th March 2018, and updated on the 27th April 2023. The artwork used for the cover is 'The Red Cross' by Evelyn De Morgan.