Rocky Mountain Atelier TMO Master's Message

Greetings in the Light of Martinism!

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Do you ever wonder why Martinists use this phrase in Greeting to each other?

What might be the reason for this unusual phrase?

How do Martinists understand the meaning imparted by this phrase?

The answer to these questions is found in the “back story” or history of the Martinist Order which I will briefly transmit to you in this message.

The Traditional Martinist Order is an initiatic Order and a school of moral chivalry based on Judeo-Christian mysticism. Although based on the esoteric teachings of Christianity and Judaism (Kabbalah), it is not a religion and Martinist members come from many different traditions and all walks of life. In addition, the Martinist teachings include lessons and experiments on understanding our dreams, the relationships of numbers, attuning with the celestial bodies, symbolism, and more. The name Martinism is derived from that of Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin (1743-1803), the French mystic and author who wrote under the pseudonym of “the Unknown Philosopher.” Martinism was formed into an Order by Gérard Encausse, MD (known as Papus) and Augustin Chaboseau in the late 1800s, and is now conducted under the auspices of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC.

The writings of Louis Claude de Saint-Martin and Martinès de Pasqually form the foundations of the Martinist Teachings. The story of these two great mystics begins in the early eighteenth century. In the midst of the great political and economic unrest leading to the French Revolution, France paused to listen to a debonair, inspiring, mysterious man who awed both the nobility and the people with the high level of mysticism contained in his published writings. This author signed his books "The Unknown Philosopher." Where did his great understanding come from? He could have been easily mistaken for a Sophist, yet he possessed the gentleness and profound understanding of a philanthropist. This person was Louis Claude de Saint-Martin.

The person to whom Louis Claude de Saint-Martin gave credit for his teachings was Martinès de Pasqually, a powerful mystic, adept, and theurgist of the eighteenth century. Tradition indicates he was well versed in the secret wisdom embodied in the esoteric teachings of Egypt, Greece, and the East. Shortly after 1760, Pasqually went to Bordeaux and established the headquarters for his order, The Masonic Élus-Cohen Knights of the Universe.

Saint-Martin, then an officer in the French Army, learned that one of his fellow officers was a member of this Order of the Élus-Cohens (Elect Priests). Through this friend, Saint-Martin met with the Supreme Master of the Order, Martinès de Pasqually, and was immediately captivated by the man’s goals and teachings.

In 1772, personal matters compelled Pasqually to leave France for Port-au-Prince, Haiti, where he died in 1774.

Saint-Martin traveled to England, Italy, and Germany to study humanity and nature and to compare the findings of others with his own. It was in Strasbourg, a city in northeast France, that he became acquainted with the works of Jakob Boehme (1575–1624), which revolutionized his whole mystical life. Jakob Boehme became for Saint-Martin his "second teacher." From this point until the end of his life, Saint-Martin made a daily task of translating the texts of Jakob Boehme. "I owe my entry into the higher truths to Martinès de Pasqually, and I owe the most important steps I have made into these truths to Jakob Boehme."

During the many years of his literary activity, Louis Claude de Saint-Martin wrote numerous works, including The Natural View of the Connections Existing Between the Divine, Humanity, and the Universe; The Person of Desire; The New Person; The Spirit of Things; and The Ministry of the Human-Spirit. He also left to posterity a revealing and inspiring personal correspondence, as well as a few posthumous works. In addition, he published translations of the writings of the one he called his "most dear B" (Jakob Boehme): The Birth of Dawn; The Three Principles of the Divine Essence; Forty Questions on the Soul; The Triple Life of Humanity; and Six Points and Nine Texts.

After a long period of secrecy, Martinism was restructured into an Initiatic Order in 1888 by the efforts of Dr. Gerard Encausse (Papus) and Augustin Chaboseau so that the order survived and became the Martinist Order. Papus became an authority on Martinism and his works are a source for all those interested in the tradition.

Augustin Chaboseau, who was a descendant of an uninterrupted filiation back to Louis Claude de Saint-Martin, served as Grand Master and President of the Supreme Council until his transition on January 2, 1946.

Ralph Maxwell Lewis, Imperator of the Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crucis, was received into the Traditional Martinist Order on September 1, 1939. His Initiator was Georges Lagrèze, legate and representative of Augustin Chaboseau. Consequently, the charters, manifestos, and all other documents needed for the promotion and development of Martinism in the Americas were transmitted to Ralph M. Lewis just prior to the oppression which the Traditional Martinist Order had to endure in Europe during the Second World War.

Currently, the Supreme Council of the Traditional Martinist Order is directed and presided over by the Sovereign Grand Master, Claudio Mazzucco, Imperator of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC. The Traditional Martinist Order goes back through an initiatic transmission that is absolutely authentic, to the purest sources of Martinism.

The Martinist Light has been able to shine and spread, without interruption, with its original luster in our beloved Order!

May we ALL ever dwell in the eternal light of Divine Wisdom.,

Terry Orlikoski, SI, SRC

Master Rocky Mountain Atelier

7100 Broadway Unit 3J

Denver, CO 80221 Email: terry@orlikoski.com

Cell: 702-420-0369