Christian Rosenkreuz is the legendary founder of the Rosicrucians (Order of the Rose Cross). Three writings attributed to him appear in the early 17th century. Finding Christian Rosenkreuz can solve more than one great mystery of the Renaissance.
Christian Rosenkreuz appears in three groundbreaking manifestos published early in the 17th century:
Fama Fraternitatis (published 1614 in Kassel, Germany) This manifesto introduced the founder, "Frater CRC"
Confessio Fraternitatis (published 1615 in Kassel, Germany)
The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz (published 1616 in Strasbourg, France).
According to the Fama Fraternitatis, Christian Rosenkreuz is a medieval German noble whose parents die when he's four. In another version of events his family is murdered and he's the only one left alive, at age five.
In both versions he's rescued by monks and raised in a monastery. He studies there for twelve years. At sixteen he sets out to see the world.
He travels to the Holy Land, north Africa and Spain, where he experiences and absorbs clandestine and esoteric knowledge. His expeditions date to the 15th century, connecting him with Turkish, Arab, Jewish and Persian scholars, as well as Sufi and Zoroastrian masters.
Upon his return to Germany, Rosenkreuz establishes the Fraternity of the Rose Cross with himself (Frater CRC) leading eight members. Some are friars from the monastery at which he's raised. No names or identities are given by the writings, not uncommon for a secret society.
Rosenkreuz oversees construction of a Temple known as Sanctus Spiritus, or "The House of the Holy Spirit". In this sacred building members will annually meet ... if there are members, and if they can find it.
Then he dies. The year of his death is not given in the texts. The second Manifesto, Confessio Fraternitatis, proclaims 1378 is the birth year of "our Christian Father". Some say Rosenkreuz lives for 106 years, which if added to the original date means he dies in 1484.
Comparatively, biblical Moses dies at 120 while Noah lives to a grand 950. The tomb of Rosenkreuz is found c. 120 years later by a member of the Order. Much to the brother's amazement, the body of Rosenkreuz is perfectly preserved.
The tomb, built by Rosenkreuz himself, is a heptagonal or seven-sided chamber symbolizing the universe. The chamber is festooned with celestial and earthly illustrations on the ceiling and floor. All seven walls house books and tools belonging to the Order of the Rose Cross.
At the center of the tomb, on the sarcophagus, is an altar inscribed:
"Jesus mihi omnia, nequaquam vacuum, libertas evangelii, dei intacta gloria, legis jugum" ("Jesus is everything to me, by no means empty, the freedom of the gospel, the untouched glory of God, the yoke of the law").
According to legend, the tomb of Christian Rosenkreuz is deep in the interior of Earth. This suggests the alchemical motto VITRIOL or Visita Interiora Terrae Rectificando Invenies Occultum Lapidem (Visit the interior of the Earth; by rectification thou shalt find the hidden stone).
The story of Christian Rosenkreuz can be interpreted symbolically, similar to how other hermetic or alchemical texts of the era encode information. In Renaissance alchemy the prima materia of the Philosopher's Stone has over 60 names from "Angel of Violet Light" to "Dung".
According to commentators on the 17th century Rosicrucian movement, numbers and years are not to be interpreted literally, but as symbolic messages for the initiated. The Manifestos use numerology echoing a Pythagorean style of giving objects and concepts number values.
Pythagoras along with many other mathematicians of the ancient worlds seeks properties of ratios and specific numbers which are fundamental to our reality. Pythagorean numerology is intentional and seeks to find symbolism that would be understood by other cultures.
Kabbal numerology is more accidental. Every word has a corresponding number no matter how it's spelled. In Kabbalah, each number is associated with specific spiritual concepts and energies, a practice known as gematria.
Numerical values of words and phrases reveal hidden insights and connections. Those who explore the hidden world of Kabbalistic gematria uncover deeper meanings and symbolism.
In this ancient practice, each Hebrew letter is assigned a numerical value. By computing numerical values of words or phrases, one reveals deeper insights and connections. This method speculates on the complex connections of language, numbers and spirituality.
The Rosicrucian Manifestos clarify the intended use of symbolism. According to the Confessio:
"... We speak unto you by parables, but would willingly bring you to the right, simple, easy and ingenuous exposition, understanding, declaration, and knowledge of all secrets."
The metaphorical nature of legends lends a nebulous quality to the origins of Rosicrucianism. The opening of Rosenkreuz's tomb can represent cycles of nature or cosmic events.
From this one can interpret the opening of new possibilities for mankind consequent on the advances of the 16th and early 17th centuries. Similarly, Rosenkreuz's pilgrimage seems to parallel the transmutation steps of the Great Work, or Magnum Opus, of the alchemists.
Some scholars identify Christian Rosenkreuz reborn in the Count of St. Germain, a courtier, adventurer and alchemist in the 18th century. People have tried to puzzle out the identity of Christian Rosenkreuz for hundreds of years.
He's identified as the possible subject in one of Rembrandt's paintings "A Man in Armor", in the 17th century. Some believe Rosenkreuz to be a pseudonym for a more famous historical figure. There's some sociological interest here in the desire of followers for a strong leader.
Of the three texts, Johannes Valentinus Andreae, a German Protestant uptopian theologian, is the admitted author of The Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz. It's suspected he wrote the others but not known.
The story follows Passover and seven days of unleavened bread exactly. The Rosicrucian movement is thought to be founded on the three texts, which claim the Order has been guarding secrets of ancient wisdom until the intellectual climate is ready to receive it.
According to the Rosicrucian Fellowship, founded 1909 AD, first temple est. 1911, the Rosicrucian Order begins in 1313, with twelve exalted beings gathered round a thirteenth, Christian Rosenkreuz. These adepts are already advanced far beyond the cycle of rebirth.
The Order of the Golden and Rosy Cross is founded as a German Rosicrucian organization in the 1750s by Freemason and alchemist Hermann Fictuld. It's open only to Master Masons, one of whom is King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia.
By the 1770s, the order has centers in Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt am Main, Regensburg, Munich, Vienna, Prague, Poland, Hungary, and Russia. The name is from a 1710 publication, The perfect and true preparation of the Philosophers Stone according to the secret of the Brotherhoods of the Golden and Rosy Cross.
After the 1797 death of Friedrich Wilhelm II, an enthusiastic member, interest declines. Society moves to new trends. Rosicrucianism becomes a brick-and-mortar organized religion in the 20th century, and Christian Rosenkreuz is still a testament to human credulity.
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