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| {{Short description|French text by Abbé Nicolas-Pierre-Henri de Montfaucon de Villars}} | |||
| '''''The Comte De Gabalis''''' is a text for ] and spiritual ]s. It is composed of five discourses given by a spiritual master to the student or aspirant. It was anonymously published in 1670 under the title ''Comte De Gabalis''. The title's meaning is the Count of the ] as the text is cabalistic in nature. The "Holy Cabala" is mentioned explicitly throughout. The first English translation was rendered in 1680. Only in later publishings did the name Abbé N. de Montfaucon de Villars become attached to this work as being its author. In English editions published by The Brothers, an extensive commentary by ] was included.<ref>''Comte De Gabalis'', 1914 or 1922 English edition, The Brothers: Macoy & Masonic Supply Co.</ref> | |||
| {{italic title}} | |||
| '''''Comte de Gabalis''''' is a 17th-century French text by ] (1635–1673). The titular "Comte de Gabalis" ("Count of Cabala") is an esotericist who explains the mysteries of the world to the author. It first appeared in Paris in 1670, anonymously, though the identity of the author came to be known. The original title as published by Claude Barbin was ''Le comte de Gabalis, ou entretiens sur les sciences secrètes'', "The Count of Cabala, Or Dialogs on the Secret Sciences". | |||
| The book was widely read in France and abroad, and is a source for many of the "marvelous beings" that populate later European literature.<ref name="Seeber">{{cite journal|last=Seeber|first=Edward D.|year=1944|title=Sylphs and Other Elemental Beings in French Literature since Le Comte de Gabalis (1670)|journal=]|volume=59|issue=1|pages=71–83|doi=10.2307/458845 |jstor=458845}}</ref> French readers include ]<ref>{{cite journal|last=Eigeldinger|first=Marc|year=1969|title=Baudelaire et "Le Comte de Gabalis"|journal=]|volume=69|issue=6|pages=1020–21|jstor=40523636}}</ref> and ] – it was the main source for his '']'' (1892).<ref>{{cite journal|last=Blondheim|first=D. S.|year=1918|title=Notes on the Sources of Anatole France|journal=]|volume=13|issue=3|pages=333–34|doi=10.2307/3714242 |jstor=3714242}}</ref> In English literature, it influenced ], who borrowed from it to create the sylphs in '']'' (1714), and in German, it is a likely source for ]'s '']''.<ref name="Seeber"/> In recent times it has been considered by some to have been intended as a satire of occult philosophy, though in its time it was taken seriously by many readers.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Veenstra|first1=Jan R.|editor1-last=Olsen|editor1-first=Karin E.|editor2-last=Veenstra|editor2-first=Jan R.|title=Airy Nothings: Imagining the Otherworld of Faerie from the Middle Ages to the Age of Reason: Essays in Honour of Alasdair A. MacDonald|date=2013|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-25823-5|pages=213–240|chapter=Paracelsian Spirits in Pope's Rape of the Lock}}</ref> Many later authors have also taken it to be a serious source, including ] and prominent occult writers ], ] and ].<ref>{{cite thesis | |||
| ] says, <blockquote>To a reader who cannot or will not believe that the Comte de Gabalis was a real person, but merely a fiction...., the advice is that he leave the question open and attend to the teachings of the book.... All this has meaning to those only of the Inner Life... .....the man and the book...leave a subtle influence upon the mind and prepare it for a flight upwards.<ref>] journal ''The World'' xix 1914 pp 116–121</ref></blockquote> | |||
| |last= Nagel | |||
| |first= Alexandra H. M. | |||
| |date= 2007 | |||
| |title= Marriage with Elementals From Le Comte de Gabalis to a Golden Dawn ritual | |||
| |url= https://www.academia.edu/4046657 | |||
| |chapter= | |||
| |publisher= University of Amsterdam | |||
| |docket= | |||
| |oclc= | |||
| |access-date= | |||
| }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | ==References== | ||
| The identity of the great master -- the Comte -- though hidden initially, has become known and is evident in the later publication by "The Brothers" -- which included a painting of him. At the beginning of the text is a painting by ] titled '']''. This painting can be viewed at the ], New York City. However, those there who attend to this painting are not aware of who the 'Polish Rider' is. | |||
| {{Reflist}} | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| Adepts and members of certain spiritual organizations confirm that it is Sir ] — who also wrote the Shakespeare plays, employing the pen name "William Shakespeare" — earlier in his illustrious career. Therefore, Francis Bacon at a later date, and just prior to 1670, would have given five discourses under another another pen name 'Comte De Gabalis'. This personage, it is held, disappeared for a time before returning again -- in the Ascended State -- with a new name: Saint Germain -- 'Sanctus Germanus' which means "Germain to" or "Pertaining to the Saints". The Ascended Master Saint Germain is thoroughly presented in all the Books of the Saint Germain Foundation with lengthy information on His writing the Shakespeare Plays (see "I AM" Fundamentals, Series 1, Saint Germain Press). ]. | |||
| ⚫ | * | ||
| * | |||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| The book consists of five Discourses that center on the topic: | |||
| # Nature of the Divine Principle in Man: The Student meets the Comte | |||
| # Evolution of the Divine Principle in Man: The People of the Elements | |||
| # Man's Place in Nature: The Oracles | |||
| # Children of the Sun: Children of the Philosophers | |||
| # The Life of the True Light is Radiation: Charity of the Philosophers | |||
| Lord Francis Bacon's (Shakespeare's) plays abound in elemental beings: ] and ]. ] was influenced by the ''Comte De Gabalis'' in his Rosicrucian poem '']''. Sylphs have been the favorites of the bards. The '']'' is full of stories about Beings of the Four Elements and their heroic offspring with their human partners. Similar themes and references are found in Homer's '']'' and '']'' in which the elemental beings as noted by the Comte appear as gods and goddesses such as the mighty Zeus, Hera, Aprodite, Athena, Apollo, and ], son of a mortal man and the goddess Nymph ].<ref>''The Iliad'' by Robert Fagles, Penguin Classics, 1990</ref> ] wrote about a beautiful water-nymph in his novella '']'', and Sir ] endowed the White Lady of Avenel with many of the attributes of the Nymphs. See Lord Lytton's '']'', James Barrie's ]; and the bowlers ] encountered in the ]. The story of Melusina is based on the historical marriage of a gentleman and a water Nymph. ], father of Marie Corelli, wrote "Salamandrine", a poem about a great love between a man and a female Salamander. | |||
| ==Text== | |||
| ⚫ | * |
||
| * at archive.org | |||
| *''Comte De Gabalis'', 1914 or 1922 English edition, The Brothers: Macoy & Masonic Supply Co. | |||
| *''Comte De Gabalis'', 1992 English edition, Kessinger Publishing ISBN 1-56459-201-4 | |||
| ⚫ | ==References== | ||
| {{reflist}} | |||
| {{17thC-novel-stub}} | |||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:Comte De Gabalis}} | |||
| ] | |||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
Latest revision as of 22:13, 24 October 2024
French text by Abbé Nicolas-Pierre-Henri de Montfaucon de VillarsComte de Gabalis is a 17th-century French text by Abbé Nicolas-Pierre-Henri de Montfaucon de Villars (1635–1673). The titular "Comte de Gabalis" ("Count of Cabala") is an esotericist who explains the mysteries of the world to the author. It first appeared in Paris in 1670, anonymously, though the identity of the author came to be known. The original title as published by Claude Barbin was Le comte de Gabalis, ou entretiens sur les sciences secrètes, "The Count of Cabala, Or Dialogs on the Secret Sciences".
The book was widely read in France and abroad, and is a source for many of the "marvelous beings" that populate later European literature. French readers include Charles Baudelaire and Anatole France – it was the main source for his At the Sign of the Reine Pédauque (1892). In English literature, it influenced Alexander Pope, who borrowed from it to create the sylphs in The Rape of the Lock (1714), and in German, it is a likely source for Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué's Undine. In recent times it has been considered by some to have been intended as a satire of occult philosophy, though in its time it was taken seriously by many readers. Many later authors have also taken it to be a serious source, including Edward Bulwer-Lytton and prominent occult writers Éliphas Lévi, Helena Blavatsky and M. P. Hall.
References
- ^ Seeber, Edward D. (1944). "Sylphs and Other Elemental Beings in French Literature since Le Comte de Gabalis (1670)". PMLA. 59 (1): 71–83. doi:10.2307/458845. JSTOR 458845.
- Eigeldinger, Marc (1969). "Baudelaire et "Le Comte de Gabalis"". Revue d'Histoire littéraire de la France. 69 (6): 1020–21. JSTOR 40523636.
- Blondheim, D. S. (1918). "Notes on the Sources of Anatole France". The Modern Language Review. 13 (3): 333–34. doi:10.2307/3714242. JSTOR 3714242.
- Veenstra, Jan R. (2013). "Paracelsian Spirits in Pope's Rape of the Lock". In Olsen, Karin E.; Veenstra, Jan R. (eds.). Airy Nothings: Imagining the Otherworld of Faerie from the Middle Ages to the Age of Reason: Essays in Honour of Alasdair A. MacDonald. BRILL. pp. 213–240. ISBN 978-90-04-25823-5.
- Nagel, Alexandra H. M. (2007). Marriage with Elementals From Le Comte de Gabalis to a Golden Dawn ritual (Thesis). University of Amsterdam.
External links
- Full text of Comte de Gabalis in English translation
- Le Comte de Gabalis, ou Entretiens sur les sciences secrètes, nouvelle édition augmentée des Génies assistans et des gnomes irréconciliables, par l'abbé de Villars (1742 French edition)
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