On the Right Track: The Way of Martinism:::

“Vergeet niet gelukkig te zijn”.

The Martinists...admired by the wise...feared by the tyrant...persecuted by the dictator...respected by the mystic...sought by the Seeker. Since the XVIIIth century, the Martinists have been found at the very heart and center of esotericism and mystical belief in all its various expressions. While the Martinist Order is not a secret society, rarely do individual Martinists allow themselves to be seen directly; generally, only a hint of their presence is noted. Yet always, their influence is great:::

Door uw broeders en zusters te dienen past u de mysteriën in de praktijk toe. Dienen is wat de ingewijde in de Tempel doet: Werken, Gehoorzamen, Luisteren en Zwijgen. U dient de gehele mensheid door u zelf te leren kennen, want door met u zelf te beginnen, verbetetert u de hele wereld.

"Jesus said, The world is a bridge; cross this bridge but do not build upon it".

"Zoals alle rivieren uitmonden in de oceaan, zo leiden alle wegen tot Kosmisch Bewustzijn of God". - Swami Vivekananda

"Boeken zijn slechts vensters die uitkijken op de wijsheid, zij verschaffen er geen toegang toe". L.C. de Saint-Martin

"As long as there are slaughterhouses, there will be battlefields"
— Leo Tolstoy

It has been said something as small as the flutter of a butterfly's wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world. - Chaos Theory



Dear All,

I, as a free Martinist, am in the privileged position of knowing different orders and want to share with you my findings and a brief history of Martinism as I understand it.

First of all Martinism is a very diverse topic and it's diversity is a function and not a flaw. Many arguments are based on the fact, that people think, that their version (order) of Martinism is the only true version of Martinism, but this is not the fact.

In Martinism Free Initiators and their by all Souvereign Grand Masters are free in designing their version of Martinism. There are no real ground rules, but what I have seen so far there is Unity in the Diversity. All Martinist orders are using at least three degrees, are using in the core the same symbol and are using the same regalia, different in design, but same in their basics.

I like a quote by Curt Warren, which describes this very well:
"The Martinist Order was never designed to be an all inclusive dogmatic structure. It was to be suggestive, not exhaustive. It was to guide the seeker on the Path - to point the Way - and let the student/seeker, after preparation,become a teacher in its own right.
Ridgely Hunt wrote some Landmarks of Martinism, which probably most Martinists can agree on in general: http://www.martinism.com/books/Ridgely%20Hunt%20-%20The%20Landmarks%20of%20Marti\ nism.pdf

There is a quote from Stanislas de Guaita in which describes his thinking about the rules in the Martinis Order of Papus: "Sincere and unselfish pursuit of the Truth - that is what your Mind owes to yourself; fraternal kindness towards other men - that is what your heart owes to your fellow creatures. With the exception of these two duties, our order does not pretend to prescribe any other - at least not in an imperative manner. To seek the Truth and to follow the Golden Rule; this sums up Martinism."
Here my brief history of Martinism. This is based on my understanding and does not claim to be the truth or exclusive. This also should not be a list of historic facts, but explain where the roots of Martinism were laid and how the tree of Martinism with all his branches grew.

For me Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin is the foundation (ground level). He claims in a letter to Kirchberger, that his two teachers were Martinez de Pasqually and Jacob Boehme. Martinez de Pasqually was a jewish Free Mason (I am aware that he was more, but this is for me the briefest description) and Jacob Boehhme, who was a christian Mystic. So the roots of Martinsim are judeo-christian and it uses judeo-christian symbols, but I would not say it is judeo-christian, because Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin has seen the Truth behind Religion, which is the ONE Truth, which is the same for every being in this Univers, which is the "Nameless Source of the World and the Beings". It is sufficient enough, if you understand the meaning of the judeo-christian symbols to be a Martinist in my humble opinion. But I see no problem if one Martinist Order decides, that it only wants Christian members, that is their right.

Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin never founded an order and never created a degree system. It is not even 100% sure, if he gave initiations. What is known is that he taught people about what he has found for himself. He did this in a very humble way not claiming the he has the one and only truth. The core of his teaching was, that everybody can find the truth in and by himself. Here is a quote from him on initiation which I like very much:

"The only initiation which I preach and seek with all the ardour of my soul is that by which we may enter into the heart of God and make God's heart enter into us, there to form an indissoluble marriage, which will make us the friend, brother, and spouse of our Divine Redeemer. There is no other mystery to arrive at this holy initiation than to go down into the depths of our being, and not let go till we can bring forth the living vivifying root, because then all the fruit will be produced within us and without us naturally."

Over half a century later Gerad Ecausse (Papus) and Augustin Chaboseau created the core of all the Martinist Orders as we know them today. They were inspired by Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin, but added most of the stuff from other sources. The structure for example is clearly copied from Freemasonry.

Here a quote from A. E. Waite on the Martinist Order of Papus:
"Papus never concealed the fact that he and no other was the author and fount of its very simple rituals which were modestly conceived and well arranged. He connected it indeed with the name of Saint Martin as a sort of traditional founder ... a remote inspiration."

They added Kabbalah, Jeheshua, and all the little thing so many people insist, that they are the core of Martinism and they are partially right and partially wrong in doing so.

After the death of Papus the landscape of Martinist Orders became more diverse,as many of the leaders disagreed on succession and rules. Which is human and OK. So Martinism developed into this beautiful tree with many different beautiful branches instead of being one huge log. I find a tree with many branches more vivid than a big log.

My personal experience with all the different Martinist whom I met all around the world were 100% positive. So far I did not meet a single Martinist whom I did not like and every Martinist received me in a friendly and open manner. So keep the tree growing.

I have created together with some brothers a information page for Martinists (www.martinism.com).If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to contact me.

With the best wishes for true inner peace,

Sar Unitas
S.I.I.L.

“Behoud in alle dingen het verlangen naar de onuitputtelijke liefde van God; streef ernaar dit te bereiken, teneinde de illusie die ons omringt te boven te komen en onze ellende gewaar te worden. Streef er boven alles naar altijd doordrongen te zijn van het weten dat een trouwe vriend nabij is, die ons bij iedere stap vergezelt, leidt, voedt en ondersteunt. Hierdoor worden wij omzichtig en tegelijkertijd vol vertrouwen, wat ons wijsheid en kracht zal geven. Wat zou ons ontbreken als wij onveranderlijk met deze twee deugden waren bezield”.

Synarchie … Synarchie … Synarchie … d’empire, ou pas, peu importe, il fallait un coupable, tout le monde allait se rabattre sur Saint-Yves d’Alveydre et ses successeurs ! C’est lui qui avait inventé le mot ! Pourtant Saint-Yves était étranger à toute obédience maçonnique, tout mouvement mystique, et son association posthume au martinisme n’était que l’oeuvre de Papus qui allait réinventer le mouvement, sur lequel Guénon eut d’ailleurs des mots extrêmement sévères. L’action de Saint-Yves, concernant la synarchie, auprès des « souverains » de son époque, qui s’était d’ailleurs soldée par un retentissant échec, était officielle. Comme il le dit lui- même : Je ne fais ni ne veut faire partie d’aucune société secrète ni d’aucune petite église que ce soit, car j’en crois le temps absolument passé, et la synarchie en elle-même est une oeuvre de plein soleil et d’intégralité cyclique .

Le martinisme n’est pas une doctrine aisément identifiable, et ceux qui se lancèrent à la simplifier ne rencontrèrent que des déconvenues. Le martinisme est plutôt une sorte d’OVNI et correspond plus justement à une nébuleuse inconstante de courants très disparates, voire antagonistes, comme l’annonça le premier schisme dont il souffrit, la scission entre martininésisme et martinisme. Saint-Martin le reconnut lui même à la fin de sa vie, dans une lettre au Baron de Liebisdorf en 1796 : Mr Pasqually avait la clef active de ce que notre cher Boehme expose dans ses théories, mais qu’il ne nous croyait pas en état de porter encore ces hautes vérités . Le disciple renégat s’était en effet tourné vers la « clef de Boehme » que prétendait détenir Rodolphe de Salzmann, attaché à la mystique allemande, et en relation avec Eckarthausen et Lavater. Saint-Martin bouda copieusement les loges martinésistes depuis 1777, loges qui partirent à la dérive dans les décennies qui suivirent la mort de Pasqually pour finir par être absorbées par le Grand Orient en 1811, qui avait été jusque là le frère ennemi. Ainsi on peut dire, stricto sensu, que le martinisme n’existe pas : Saint-Martin ne fonda jamais aucun ordre ; il n’eut jamais cette prétention, et le nom de martinistes désigne simplement ceux qui avaient adopté une manière de voir conforme à la sienne, tendant plutôt à s’affranchir du dogmatisme rituélique des loges et à le rejeter comme inutile .

Le Grand Orient, que l’on a vu très impliqué dans l’émergence du synarchisme de Vichy, pouvait donc naturellement créer ce bouc émissaire naturel, d’une part parce que le martinisme, au sens originel, n’existait pas, et ensuite pour régler ses comptes avec le martinésisme qui avait osé le défier à la fin du XVIII° : « La propagande de Saint-Martin échoua près des loges de Paris et de Versailles, mais lorsqu’en 1778, ces loges eurent vu leurs frères de Lyon se tourner définitivement vers le rite templier allemand de la stricte observance, et le grand maître Willermoz prendre la succession du grand maître provincial Pierre d’Aumont, successeur de Jacques Molay, elles songèrent à fusionner avec les loges Philalèthes qui, depuis 1773, travaillaient d’après les données de Martinès et de Swedenborg, et dans les chapitres secrets desquels n’était admis aucun officier du Grand Orient »

La manoeuvre de mise en accusation était encore plus facile depuis que le concept de Martinisme devint encore plus diffus, au début XX°, et depuis que celui-ci avait récupéré, par un malheureux concours de circonstances, le concept synarchique, qui n’est ni présent dans l’ouvre de Pasqually, ni dans celle de Saint-Martin. Willermoz, qui affirma à sa mort « qu’il n’existe plus de Réau-Croix,et que leur transmission s’est interrompue », et qui avait orienté le martinisme dans le rituel très chrétien du RER, y ayant adjoint quelques éléments mineurs des Elus-Coëns, n’était pas pour autant « un héritier de Martinès [...] qui était juif, et qui voulait restaurer le sacerdoce juif dans la maçonnerie intérieure, tout en étant foncièrement opposé au sacerdoce chrétien » . C’est Papus qui allait étoffer la nébuleuse en créant la composante que le Grand Orient allait, un demi-siècle plus tard, indirectement accuser. Après près d’un siècle de sommeil, l’ordre martiniste renaît de ses cendres par Papus, en publiant son premier manifeste en 1889, et rayonne jusqu’en Russie, avant de se disperser à nouveau trente ans plus tard, d’une part, vers une tendance plus maçonnique, avec Jean Bricaud, d’autre part plus papusienne, avec P.A. Chaboseau, et enfin plus Alveydrique, celle qui nous intéresse, créée en 1920 par Victor Blanchard, et nommée Ordre Martiniste Synarchique, deux ans avant la création du Mouvement Synarchique d’Empire, dont le créateur nous est inconnu. C’est ces deux ans de battement qui allaient tant faire souffrir le martinisme, tant ce terme devenait fourre-tout, et tant il se mariait bien avec l’oeuvre de Saint-Yves d’Alveydre que Papus avait arraché des limbes pour promouvoir aux premières loges.

C’est René Guénon qui mettra un terme à la polémique en 1949, dénonçant l’escroquerie grossière : La Synarchie, selon ce dernier [Saint-Yves d'Alveydre], n’a assurément rien de commun avec ce qui a fait tant de bruit en ces dernières années et à quoi il semble bien que ses promoteurs aient donné le même nom, tout exprès pour créer certaines confusions, en quoi ils n’ont d’ailleurs que trop bien réussi, car les livres et les articles publiés à ce propos ont répandu dans le public toute sorte d’erreurs grossières sur Saint-Yves et sur son oeuvre ) Le pauvre SaintYves, qui déjà n’avait pas trouvé écho en son temps, doit passer son temps à se retourner dans sa tombe...

Faut-il s’étendre sur les divergences structurelles entre la synarchie de Saint-Yves d’Alveydre et le pacte synarchique révolutionnaire, qui n’ont de commun que l’appellation ? L’avis de Guénon sur ce point est très significatif. Dans une revue publiée par lui-même, « La Gnose » en 1911, où il publiait sous le pseudonyme de Palingénius, on peut lire : le principe de l’institution des castes, sur laquelle repose toute société établie synarchiquement, est en accord avec les règles organiques et harmoniques de notre univers. La caste [au sens antique] est déterminée pour chaque individu pas sa nature propre, cad l’ensemble des qualités potentielles qu’il apporte en naissant, et qui passeront en acte dans le cours de son existence terrestre . La dynamique du PSR, si elle reprend l’idée de caste, passe avec légèreté d’une structure de castes érigées selon des prédispositions naturelles et innées à une structure de castes selon une division corporatiste sociale, selon le paragraphe 146 : Les professions reconnues et organisées, seuls facteurs d’activité civique populaire, sont distribuées synarchiquement suivant leur principe basique et leur nature pour constituer : ― L’Ordre économique, ― l’Ordre politique, ― l’Ordre culturel, ― l’Ordre impérial

Contrairement au PSR, la synarchie de Saint-Yves d’Alveydre est d’essence chrétienne, au sens initiatique, et cette notion lui est si fondamentale qu’il fait de la confession juive une obédience qui, s’il la voit subordonnée au christianisme, reste à ses yeux essentielle : « C’est ainsi que je leur démontre [aux juifs], appuyé sur l’histoire du monde et de la leur, que la Synarchie, le Gouvernement arbitral, trinitaire, tiré des profondeurs de l’initiation de Moïse et de Jésus, est la promesse même des Israélites, comme la nôtre, et le triomphe même d’Israël par la Chrétienté [...] Je tiens à dire que je n’écris nullement pour ceux auxquels suffit la forme d’enseignement primaire qu’a revêtue le judéo-christianisme, grâce aux talmudistes et aux théologiens chrétiens [...] Mais Moïse comme Jésus nous a légué une promesse d’ordre social dont l’accomplissement prophétique vise nos temps [...] Ce qui importe, c’est que dans l’état social européen, dans cette universelle église laïque, non constituée encore, mais en avance de moralité et d’intellectualité sur ses directions politiques et sacerdotales, Israël, couvert par Jésus-Christ, son souverain pontife et le nôtre, est encore plus chez lui que chez nous, en Europe même, et cela de part les droits les plus sacrés. Il importe donc au premier chef, que le christianise s’accomplisse socialement, de haut en bas, par la reconnaissance des trois grands ordres sociaux institués par Moïse, par la synarchie ». Il faudra être maître funambule pour réconcilier cette vision avec la technocratie du Pacte Synarchique Révolutionnaire qui, il faut bien le reconnaître, se situe à des années-lumière.

Le martinisme, quelle que soit la variante à laquelle on se réfère, n’a jamais rien eu à voir, de près ou de loin, avec tout ce panier de crabes de Vichy. Le martinisme fut victime de la malheureuse appellation de Victor Blanchard, l’ordre martiniste synarchique, qui, comble de tout, fut créé 2 ans avant le Mouvement Synarchique Révolutionnaire. Toutes les analyses, qui font remonter la Synarchie, au sens du MSR, à Blanchard, Papus, Saint-Martin ou Martinès de Pasqually se sont laissé piéger par la surface sémantique et n’ont probablement pas eu la moindre connaissance des doctrines correspondantes. Cette idée machiavélique, de reprendre le mot Synarchie dans le Pacte Synarchique Révolutionnaire, est plutôt à mettre sur le compte du Grand Orient britannique, qui tirait à l’époque toutes les ficelles par l’intermédiaire de Worms, et bien que cela soit particulièrement difficile à démontrer, l’association coule de source.


Von beginn an gab es für den Martinisten zwei Wege, um das gesteckte Ziel zu erreichen: es war dies einmal der operative (magische) Weg und der des "Herzens" oder mystische, der im cercle intérieur oder in einem cercle extérieur vollzogen wurde oder noch wird. Neben diesen beiden recht unterschiedlichen Wegen des modernen Martinisten zur Vervollkommnung des Menschen sind auch die Lehren recht verschieden von den einzelnen Ideologen under den Martinisten interpretiert worden. Während z.B. einer der "Ahnherren", Jacob Böhme, die Frage einer Reinkarnation der menschlichen Seele, ignorierte, Pasqually vernachlässigte und Saint Martin ablehnte, ist sie doch von vielen Martinisten positiv beantwortet worden. Man könnte ebenso die Quadratur des Kreises versuchen, um die widersprüchlichen Lehren des Martinismus im 19. Und 20. Jahrhundert in völlige Kongruenz zu überführen. Im Januarheft versuchte man in der L’Initiation die princpes fondamentaux du martinisme zu fixieren. Doch auch dieses Bemühen blieb ein Fragment. Am 13. Oktober 1968 unternahm man wohl den letzten Versuch, ein einheitliches Obergebäude der Lehre zu verkünden. Freiheit, Menschlichkeit, Brüderlichtkeit und Gleichberechtigung von Mann und Frau sind die Leitideen.
Dr. Karl R. H. Frick

LE PARANORMAL EST PARMI NOUS! Les miracles de Maître Philippe de Lyon.

De ziel is het leven van de geest, het brood van de geest, en ze is een goddelijke vonk; we moeten ze laten groeien. Ze moet een zon worden in ons. Onze ziel groeit wanneer we vooruitgang maken in het goede. - Meester Philippe

“Vergeet niet gelukkig te zijn” - Maurice Warnon

“Het is verboden om wonderen te doen.”

"Les bons écrits sont ceux qui apprennent la patience."

"Hou van een ander als van jezelf." - Mijnheer Philippe

Le Martiniste est ouvert au ciel, à la Terre, aux hommes, à lui-même.

"Il faut lire les Evangiles.Plus vous avancerez, plus ils vous donneront."

“Het is niet zozeer van belang dat we volmaakt zijn, maar dat we steeds aan onszelf blijven werken!”

"We kennen onze vorige levens niet, omdat we dan zouden weten welk obstakel, welke ziekte of ongeval ons zou moeten overkomen; we zouden alles doen om dit te vermijden, wat tenkoste van onszelf zou zijn"

Lors d'une tenue martiniste, un nouveau Supérieur Inconnu » (troisième degré de l'initiation martiniste), s'enorgueillissait de son nouveau titre, Philippe ENCAUSSE, le fils de PAPUS, lui dit d'une voix très douce : mon frère, si je peux me permettre, le SI de ton nouveau sautoir ne veut pas dire « Supérieur Inconnu » mais «Serviteur Inconnu».

“We hebben beproevingen nodig om te groeien en aangezien niemand om beproevingen vraagt, moeten ze ons wel opgedrongen worden.”


I don’t usually recommend books with the sole exception of my two all time favorites: H. Spencer Lewis’ Mystical life and Secret Doctrines of Jesus and here we go again the best children’s book ever: The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

However, there is an exception to every rule. And so recently I’ve come across a little treasury which every Martinist, Rosicrucian and/or Theosophist should read. The Paranormal is among us. The Miracles of Master Philippe. Written by Christian Vandekerkhove. ISBN: 9789077135198

Unfortunately the book is been written in Dutch and not (yet) available in English or French to my best knowledge.

Nizier Anthelme Philippe, or M.Philippe for short, was a spiritual Master living in Europe at the end of the 19th century. He was known by the french masses for healing all kind of ailments, and by the french intelligentia for his original teachings, which were founded on christian apostles and mystical practicae, yet based on common prayers. He had a number of disciples, such as Chapas and Sedir, and some of physicians interested in the spiritual and physical aspects of healing sessions.

He claimed nothing of or for himself, and people knew him as humble yet strong in persona. His healing faculties manifested naturally when he was young. In the middle of his life, He started to be more known in some circles, for his unusual methods of teaching, and the not-so-occasional events that seemed to accompany him anywhere he went, and under his command. It is said he befriended closely with angels of the greater order, and above all, into Christ's Power.

He conducted healing and teaching sessions, where prayer held an important part, in Lyon, France, open to both participants and witnesses. which is why is often refered to as "Le Maitre Philippe de Lyon" (Master Philippe). He also enjoyed close relation with the Russian Tsar family, and certain figures in Europe of that time. Being friendly to everybody, from lower, middle to higher classes of the society, he had good humor and it felt good enjoying life while being with him. His generosity was abundant and examplary, with an exhalted sense of charity. and did not make difference of social status, mingled with leaders and working classes with equal ease. Some of His life however, remains a great mystery.

It’s perhaps not quite correct to state that the lives of Master Philippe and Papus (Dr. Gérard Encausse)were inextricably linked but to know one, makes it easier to understand the other.

Papus the renovator of Martinism and promotor of the Supreme Council of 1881 and consequently founder of the Ordre Martiniste, considered Maître Philippe to be his "spiritual Master" as he would always refer to Saint Yves d’Alveydre as his "Intellectual teacher".

For a more in depth description of the lives of the two please refer to an article of his website: The Master: Philippe de Lyon by Philippe Coppens.

http://www.philipcoppens.com/philippedelyon.html

Issues deserving further research and investigation are:
a) Philippe's remarkable unfavorable attitude toward cremation,
b) his Martinist affiliation and
c) his relationship with the Tsar his family and finally Rasputin.

La philosophie de l’Ordre Martiniste fut aussi très influencée par l’enseignement du Maître Philippe de Lyon et par celui de Saint-Yves d’Alveydre, respectivement “maître spirituel” et “maître intellectuel” de Papus. – Gerard Galtier

Papus’ meeting with “Philippe de Lyon” was a decisive moment in the life of this initiate. Philippe de Lyon, the pseudonym of Nizier Anthelme Philippe, did not openly belong to any secret organisation. However, he seems to have been unquestionably a vital element for the expansion of the Lyon Martinists. He designed a pentacle specifically for the Order and a medal worn by the Martinist dignitaries. Another rather remarkable coincidence is that the group of Philippe de Lyon would later settle in the vicinity of Rennes-les-Bains… of all places.

"A small legacy of two letters and a few points".

Soon after Nicholas II inherited the imperial crown from Alexander III, Papus wrote him an open letter, advising him to reject absolutism and recommending that he read the works of Fabre d'Olivet and Saint-Yves d'Alveydre.

Both Master Philippe and Papus played an important role at the Russian court. Papus had brought Master Philippe into contact with the Russian Imperial family (1900-1902) and Maître Philippe for a while moved to St. Petersburg.

The Martinist Order was introduced into the Russian court by Papus where Tsar Nicholas II, was the Heptad Master of a lodge (Cross & Star). Meetings were held within his Palace.

They not only advised the Tsar on political affairs but also maintained contact with many other influential Russian initiates of the Martinist Order among them two of the Tsar’s uncles and numerous other relatives.

Papus visited Russia three times, in 1901, 1905 and 1906, thus serving the Tsar and Tsarina Alexandra both as physician and occult consultant. In 1905 Papus allegedly conjured up the spirit of Alexander III, Tsar Nicholas’ father, who prophesied that the Tsar would meet his downfall at the hands of revolutionaries. Papus told the Tsar that he would be able to magically avert his prophecy as long as he was alive. Nicholas kept his position on the throne until 141 days after Papus’death! (Rasputin predicted the same!). During their later correspondence, Papus warned the Romanovs several times against the influence of Rasputin.

The original text on which the published version of the The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion was based fell into the hands of Sergei Nilus, who confused the Martinist Pentacle with the Star of David. Nilus did not at first intend it to discredit Judaism. On the contrary, he brought it to the tsar with the intention of discrediting the esoteric enclave at the imperial court - the enclave of Papus, Monsieur Philippe and others who were members of the secret society in question. Before doing so, he almost certainly doctored the language, rendering it far more venomous and inflammatory than it initially was. When the tsar spurned him, Nilus then released the Protocols in their doctored form for publication. They had failed in their primary objective of compromising Papus and Monsieur Philippe. But they might still serve a secondary purpose - that of fostering anti-Semitism. Although Nilus's chief targets had been Papus and Monsieur Philipe, he was hostile to Judaism as well.

When the news of Papus’ death reached Alexandra in 1916, she sent a note to her husband (who was then commanding the Russian army at the front in WW I) containing the words:
Papus is dead, we are doomed!

From the website Artigos Martinistas: The Master Philippe de Lyon

Philippe Anthelme Nizier was born in 1849. From a very young age, he was known for his “strange powers” and some even pondered whether he might not be the returned Jesus. After his death in 1905, he would be seen as a master – “Maître Philippe”. Mastering his powers came naturally, and from a young age; there is no evidence that he ever studied with or under anyone to refine or control them: “I was not even six years old and already the village priest was worried about certain manifestations, about which I was not yet aware. At the age of thirteen, I acquired the powers to heal, even though I was still incapable of taking account of the strange things that went on inside of me.” But despite no total understanding of what he was, it meant that “Master Philippe” had begun his life as a healer.
Though “blessed” with this gift, no-one in his vicinity pushed him into becoming a healer. In fact, fourteen years old, he became an apprentice butcher with his uncle in Lyon. It was there that he would, for the first time, publically show his healing abilities. When he cut the tendons of his thumb and index of the left hand while gutting an animal, he repositioned the thumb that was partially severed, bleeding profusely, and began to pray. He asked God to reconnect the thumb back to the hand; a few moments later, the blood coagulated, and the miracle occurred. When a doctor inspected the wound in hospital shortly afterwards, he merely applied a protective bandage, noting the wound was not likely to infect. But despite such miraculous healing, when he enlisted for war in 1870, it is known that he did not remain an active soldier for long, because of this injury.

The miraculous healing of this injury soon spread throughout the quarter, and the young butcher was solicited for the smallest of accidents. It meant that he had to choose in which direction to take his life forward, and after a series of “séances”, in which he healed the sick, in 1872, he decided to open a cabinet, in his adopted town of Lyon, where people could come to consult him on an individual basis. The career from butcher to healer had a further advantage: he had wanted to study, but had not been allowed; now, he wanted to recommence his studies, and train in medicine.
Medicine, then as now, was modern medicine, focusing on diagnosis and the prescription of a cocktail of pharmaceuticals to help the patient. Nizier was closer to the “primitive shamans”, who conformed to an “old vision” of healing, in which the task of the doctor was to literally restore health, rather than diagnose and prescribe. As such, Nizier was able to heal better than most doctors, but through unconventional methods. Unsurprisingly, this caused jealousy with fellow students and assistants, if only because their “science” – their methodology – was clearly not present in such miraculous healings.
Still, his formal education added a new dimension to his healing skill: Nizier would become an even better analyst. When a young woman complained that she was short of breath, suffered violent pains on her side and could hardly stand, everyone in his class was unable to diagnose her. But Nizier stated she suffered from a double pulmonary embolism – a very scientific proclamation – followed by the almost biblical “Stand up, now you are healed”. The patient stood up, and immediately no longer felt any pain.
The sceptical mind will argue that her illness itself was imaginary and Nizier was solely able to convince her she was now healed – but Nizier was able to perform this feat time and again. One day, he saw a sick man crying in his bed, because his leg was to be amputated the following day. He assured him that would not be the case. Indeed, the following day, the surgeon saw that the leg was healing, no longer requiring the amputation, and asked how this could be, whereupon the sick man replied “it was this small monsieur there who attended to me.”

If all imaginary or a stroke of luck, at best, his colleagues should have asked him how they too could acquire such a convincing tone that their patients too would think they were healed purely by the words uttered by the doctor. Alas, rather than praise Nizier for his diagnostic and healing capabilities, which in this case were performed in the presence of his superiors and fellow students, all focused on the fact that he had treated someone without having the proper degree; his licence to work at the hospital was soon revoked, noting as reason that “he performs occult medicine and is a veritable charlatan”. It would be part of a series of problems Master Philippe had with the French medical hierarchy.
As these things go, his harsh treatment by the corridors of power strengthened public belief on the streets; to some extent, it was confirmation that Nizier worked outside the bounds of normal science – with the specific distinction that he was able to perform more than normal science had so far accomplished. And as his reputation grew, so did the stories; some even claimed he had been able to resurrect a person from the dead, thus definitely putting him on par with at least one biblical character!
Even though he had his licence revoked for treating someone without having the proper degree, it was about all the authorities could do. “Master Philippe” seldom touched his patients, so they could not go for more outlandish claims of malpractice, if not worse. In his rapport with the patient, he merely asked that person to morally engage himself, to reform himself, and call upon the help of God in the healing process. It was very “clean”, and hence difficult to sanction further than they already had.

Meanwhile, in his personal life, he had married Jeanne Landar, in 1877. They had met in 1875, when his future mother-in-law brought her daughter, who was sick, to see him. He healed her and she began to attend his séances. Once married, they had two children. The eldest, Jeanne Victoire, was born in 1878 and herself married a doctor in 1897. In 1881, a son, Albert, was born, but he died three months old.
By that year, his fame had spread far outside the Lyon region; he treated the Bey of Tunis in 1881 and though at home he was not even given the title of doctor, in 1884, he was granted a doctorate in Medicine by the University of Cincinnati; in 1885, the city of Acri in Italy made him an Honorary Citizen, for his “scientific and humanitarian merits” and in 1886, the Royal Academy of Rome gave him the honorary title of Doctor of Medicine. However, back at home, on November 3, 1887, he was condemned for illegally practicing medicine; a second condemnation followed in 1890.
The latter year was the start of a decade in which he would make powerful friends. One of these was Gérard Encausse, better known as Papus, best known as an occultist, but first and foremost a qualified doctor. Many scholars of occult history have written about Papus, noting how he lead several influential secret societies in France, but few have underlined how Papus and Master Philippe were very close friends, having met under exceptional circumstances.
There is more than one version about how the two met. The standard account is that Papus was practicing in his home for an occult ritual, and was about to enter the magical circle, armed with a ceremonial sword, not knowing that the ritual would lead to his imminent death. Master Philippe was casually passing through the street and was inspired to open Papus’ front door, enter without permission, to find its resident about to perform the ritual. Master Philippe told him to stop, thus saving his life, to become his guide and close friend. Another version says that Papus had previously seen Master Philippe in a dream and instantly recognised him as his “saviour”.
The extent of their friendship is best illustrated by noting that Philippe became godfather to Encausse’s son, who was named Philippe, and who later wrote a book called “Le Maître Philippe, de Lyon”.

Despite becoming best friends, they did not share all values together. Papus was very much an adept of secret societies, whereas Nizier argued that “secret societies have no value. They have never done any good except to themselves. They all practice despotism, and it should not be like that. We are all brothers, we need to help each other and not have any secrets, everything needs to be in the light. There should not be preferences.”
Their friendship did direct Papus away from magic, towards “true magic”. Rather than a series of robotic actions that were designed to bring about an end result (very much like a doctor prescribing his pharmaceutical cocktail), Papus wanted to know real magic and for this, he became a student of a “real shaman”, Master Philippe.
Thus, Encausse himself went on to assist in several of Nizier’s healings and wanted to comprehend “true healing”, rather than “qualified doctorship”. He also provided testimony to what Nizier performed, stating it was genuine, and not some magic trick. Encausse wrote how with one healing, he and two other doctors were present when a young mother brought in her five year old child; the doctors diagnosed the boy suffering from a far advanced form of tuberculose meningitis. Encausse noted that Nizier, when trying to heal people, often worked in the presence of 80 to 100 people, and that he usually tried to get the group in a positive mindset. He did so in the case of this child, telling the group that for a period of two hours, they should not speak anything bad about those not present. Two hours later, the small child was healed, as testified by the doctors present. The presence of a positive group mind-set thus seems to have played a role in Philippe’s healings, though was obviously not a requirement, as he was able to heal in one-on-one situations too.
In 1893, Hector Durville founded a School of Magnetism in Paris, with the help of Papus, who wanted Master Philippe to open a similar school in Lyon, which he did in October 1895. However, all are in agreement that this “school” had little to do with magnetism and that it was largely Philippe doing what he did before: his own specific way of healing. Indeed, it is unclear why Papus would have insisted that Philippe practiced something that might help some with no native abilities, but which would obviously have limited Nizier in using his own abilities. Alternatively, perhaps Papus was hoping that with Master Philippe’s help, magnetism might become a more powerful method of healing than it was, thus bringing about “medicine that would heal”.

A lot has been written about Papus’ connection to the Russian court, but what is less-known, is the prominent role of Master Philippe in this. In September 1900, grand-duke Vladimir was one of several Russian nobles that visited Philippe in Lyon. When he had returned to Russia, he called upon the Master, who left on December 29, 1900 and would stay in Russia for two months. Another Russian noble’s notes reveal how he met Nizier during mass in Fourvière, the “high town” of Lyon. The priest’s sermon had tackled the notion that the miracles reported in the bible should not be taken literally. After the end of mass, Philippe wanted to speak to the priest and told him he was wrong. “May thunder strike this church if I can believe these things”, he said. Nizier apparently looked the priest in the eyes, made a gesture and immediately, lightning appeared inside the cathedral, with it striking at their feet, followed by a loud thunder. The display left the Russian noble visibly impressed. In further documentation about his Russian exploits, it was even reported that in Russia, Nizier was seen as a magus, and had even been able to calm a storm! “And I was told many other marvels.”
From then on, when members of the Russian royal household came to France, some would visit him in Lyon. It is how Nizier got to see the emperor and his wife in 1901. They too would invite him back to Russia, an invitation he accepted; his daughter and her husband accompanied him on this trip.

Alle religies zullen samensmelten in één enkele: die van de naastenliefde. — Meester Philippe

Saunière & Martinism # 3: The Illuminati Protocols. Hiérarchie, Fraternité et Liberté! ou Liberté, Egalité et Charité?