Joséphin Péladan (28 March 1858 – 27 June 1918) was a French novelist and

Rosicrucian Rosicrucianism () is a spirituality, spiritual and cultural movement that arose in early modern Europe in the early 17th century after the publication of several texts announcing to the world a new Western esotericism, esoteric order. Rosicruc ...

who later briefly joined the

Martinist Martinism is a form of Christian mysticism and esoteric Christianity concerned with the fall of the first man, his materialistic state of being, deprived of his own, divine source, and the process of his eventual (if not inevitable) return, cal ...

order led by Papus (Gérard Encausse). His father was a journalist who had written on prophecies, and professed an esoteric-aesthetic form of Rosicrucianism and universalist Catholicism. He established the

Salon de la Rose + Croix The Salon de la Rose + Croix was a series of six art and music salons hosted by Joséphin Péladan in 1890s Paris. The Salon de la Rose + Croix grew out of Péladan's Mystic Order of the Rose + Croix, a cultic religious art movement that he esta ...

for painters, writers, and musicians sharing his artistic ideals, the Symbolists in particular.

Biography

Péladan was born into a

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

family that was devoutly Roman Catholic. He studied at Jesuit colleges at

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

and

Nîmes Nîmes ( , ; ; Latin: ''Nemausus'') is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Gard Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region of Southern France. Located between the Med ...

. After he failed his baccalaureat, Péladan moved to Paris and became a literary and art critic. His older brother Adrien studied alchemy and occultism as well. Péladan was an extremely active member of the French Occult Revival and a key influence on French and Belgian Symbolist art. However, his eccentric manner and overbearing nature caused him to be largely ridiculed during his lifetime, and quickly forgotten upon his early death at

Neuilly-sur-Seine Neuilly-sur-Seine (; 'Neuilly-on-Seine'), also known simply as Neuilly, is an urban Communes of France, commune in the Hauts-de-Seine Departments of France, department just west of Paris in France. Immediately adjacent to the city, north of the ...

, from shellfish poisoning.

Career

In 1882 Lucie-Smith, Edward. (1972) ''Symbolist Art''. London:

Thames & Hudson Thames & Hudson (sometimes T&H for brevity) is a publisher of illustrated books in all visually creative categories: art, architecture, design, photography, fashion, film, and the performing arts. It also publishes books on archaeology, history, ...

, p. 109. he came to Paris where Arsene Houssaye gave him a job on his artistic review, ''L'Artiste''. In 1884 he published his first novel, ''Le vice suprême'', which recommended the salvation of man through occult magic of the ancient East. His novel was an instant success with the French public, which was experiencing a revived interest in spirituality and mysticism. The novel went through several printings. Péladan's ''Le vice suprême'' and subsequent novels are interwoven with

and

occult The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mysti ...

themes. He shared the design of his full cycle of novels - often including those in planning - in appendices to many of his books. After reading Péladan's first novel, the French poet Stanislas de Guaita became interested in occultism. Following long correspondence, the two became acquainted in Paris. Péladan was somewhat influenced by the teachings of Eliphas Lévi, but his main focus drew on the Rosicrucian tenets derived from the order of Toulouse Rosicrucians into which he had been initiated by his brother Adrien, with a strong focus on doing good in the world and reaching for spiritual ideals. Péladan initiated de Guaita into his order, and soon afterwards, de Guaita shared his vision of building an esoteric school that would blend and revive historical esoteric orders. After becoming acquainted with

Gérard Encausse Gérard Anaclet Vincent Encausse (13 July 1865 – 25 October 1916), whose esoteric pseudonyms were Papus and Tau Vincent, was a French physician, hypnotist, and popularizer of occultism, who founded the modern Martinist Order. Early life ...

, de Guaita convinced Péladan that they should work together to realise this project. Encausse, who went by the pseudonym "Papus", was a Spanish-born French physician and occultist who had written books on

magic Magic or magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces ** ''Magick'' (with ''-ck'') can specifically refer to ceremonial magic * Magic (illusion), also known as sta ...

Kabbalah Kabbalah or Qabalah ( ; , ; ) is an esoteric method, discipline and school of thought in Jewish mysticism. It forms the foundation of Mysticism, mystical religious interpretations within Judaism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ...

and the

Tarot Tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a set of playing cards used in tarot games and in fortune-telling or divination. From at least the mid-15th century, the tarot was used to play t ...

. In 1888, the three men founded the Kabbalistic Order of the Rose-Croix (French Order Kabbalistique de Rose-Croix, O.K.R.C.). Among other teachings, the OKRC provided training in a syncretic form of

originating in an esoteric form of Jewish mysticism, which attempts to reveal hidden mystical insights in the Hebrew

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

and divine nature. The other council members drew in elements of Martinism, Masonic, and Theosophical thought. The order also conducted examinations and provided university degrees on esoteric topics. De Guaita had a large private library of books on metaphysical issues, magic, and the "hidden sciences." He was nicknamed the "Prince of the Rosicrucians" by his contemporaries for his broad learning on Rosicrucian issues. By the 1890s, De Guaita, Papus and Péladan's collaboration became increasingly strained by disagreements over strategy and doctrines. De Guaita and Papus lost Péladan's support, who left to start an order that was closer to his own vision. In June 1890, Péladan created a quasi-Catholic

Ordre du Temple de la Rose + Croix A suite, in Western classical music, is an ordered set of instrumental or orchestral/concert band pieces. It originated in the late 14th century as a pairing of dance tunes; and grew in scope so that by the early 17th century it comprised up to f ...

. He designated himself Grand Master, and created an open structure in three levels: Squire, Knight, and Commander. Sworn members and adepts could serve according to their inclination and talents: through the arts and sciences; through a reformed version of the Catholic faith; or a more mystical approach of communion with the Holy Spirit. Péladan envisioned an international network of members applying the best of human talent for an ultimately humanist approach to life.

Ordre du Temple de la Rose + Croix and the Salons de la Rose + Croix

The

became Péladan's outlet for his beliefs concerning the role of spirituality and idealism in art. As an art critic, Péladan had been vocal in critiquing the dominant trends in French art, which included officially sanctioned styles promoted by the academy, and the

Impressionists Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage of time), ordinary subjec ...

. He believed that art with encoded spiritual messages and symbols could act as a method for awakening the general public to spiritual ascent, and wrote his manifesto, ''L'art idéaliste et mystique: Doctrine de l'ordre et du salon annuel des Roses-Croix (1894)'', to present his doctrine and explain his vision. He subsequently expanded on this in ''Amphithéâtre des Sciences Mortes'', a cycle of seven esoteric manuals intended for lay readers wishing to access his system of self-initiation and self-actualisation. Through his order, between 1892 and 1897 he organised a series of six exhibits of

Symbolist Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: *Symbol, any object or sign that represents an idea Arts *Artistic symbol, an element of a literary, visual, or other work of art that represents an idea ** Color symbolism, the use of colors within various c ...

artists and associated French avant-garde painters, writers, and musicians, as the Salons de la Rose + Croix. The Salons were enormously popular with the press and public, but failed to succeed in revolutionising French art, as Péladan had hoped. Nevertheless, Péladan had a strong impact on many well-known literary figures, such as

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (; ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist, and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than 60 pla ...

and

Ezra Pound Ezra Weston Loomis Pound (30 October 1885 – 1 November 1972) was an List of poets from the United States, American poet and critic, a major figure in the early modernist poetry movement, and a Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Ita ...

, on Latin American literature and poetry, while his esoteric ideas were absorbed, both credited and uncredited, into other 20th century esoteric movements. Péladan used the initiatory name Sâr Mérodack until around 1900 when, disappointed and disillusioned by the lack of understanding his vision had met with, he silently abandoned it. Péladan had been ridiculed by his contemporaries for posing as a Babylonian Mage and claiming, for a time, that the title had been inherited through his family. However, he explains in his work that the choice of name and his identification with Merodack (the Babylonian god Marduk) was part of his initiatory system, in which one attempts to embody one's highest ideals.

Publications

Péladan wrote over a hundred books, novels, and plays interconnected in an elaborate structure intended to use as many communication channels as possible to reach readers from all walks of life. His novels have been considered symbolic works designed to spark an esoteric awakening in the reader, while his esoteric non-fiction works are handbooks for solitary self-initiation. * ''Le Vice suprême'', novel, 1884 * ''Curieuse'', 1885 * ''Femmes honnêtes!'', 1885 * ''L'Initiation sentimentale'', 1887 * ''Istar'', 1888 * ''A coeur perdu'', 1888 * ''Coeur en peine'', 1890 * ''Comment on devient mage'', 1891 * ''L'androgyne'', 1891 * ''La gynandre'', 1891 * ''La Typhonia'', 1892 * ''Le panthée'', 1892 * ''La queste du Graal - proses lyriques de l'éthopée - la décadence latine''; published "au salon de la Rose+Croix" (1892) * ''Comment on devient fée'', 1893 * ''Le théâtre complet de Wagner: les XI opéras scène par scène avec notes biographiques et critiques'', 1894 * ''L'art idéaliste et mystique: doctrine de l'ordre et du salon annuel des Rose + Croix '', 1894 * ''Babylone'', tragedy, 1895 * ''Mélusine'', 1895 * ''Le dernier Bourbon'', tragedy, 1895 * ''Le livre du sceptre: politics, 1895 * ''La Prométhéide : trilogie d'Eschyle en quatre tableaux'', 1895 * ''Le Prince de Byzance'', tragedy, 1896 * ''Le prochain conclave; instructions aux cardinaux'',

897 __NOTOC__ Year 897 ( DCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Spring – King Lambert II travels to Rome with his mother, Queen Ageltrude and brother Guy IV, Lombard duke ...

* ''Œdipe et le Sphinx'', tragedy in prose, 1903 * ''Sémiramis'', tragédie en prose,

1904 Events January * January 7 – The distress signal ''CQD'' is established, only to be replaced 2 years later by ''SOS''. * January 8 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system. * ...

* ''La Dernière Leçon de Léonard de Vinci'', essay, 1904 * ''La Clé de Rabelais'', 1905 * ''De Parsifal à don Quichotte'', essay, 1906 * ''La Doctrine de Dante'', 1908 * ''La philosophie de Léonard de Vinci d'après ses manuscrits'', essay, 1910 (rééd. Stalker, 2007) * ''De l'Androgyne. Théorie plastique'', essay 1910

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peladan, Josephin 1858 births 1918 deaths 19th-century French male writers 19th-century French novelists 19th-century Roman Catholics 20th-century French male writers 20th-century French novelists 20th-century Roman Catholics Burials at Batignolles Cemetery French erotica writers French male novelists French occultists French Roman Catholic writers Rosicrucians Writers from Lyon

Biography

Career

Ordre du Temple de la Rose + Croix and the Salons de la Rose + Croix

Publications

See also

References