False transmutation
by Athos A. Altomonte
© copyright 2007 by Esonet.it – Esonet.com

«In the middle of the square there was a round stone with the diameter of twelve steps and tall six; above it I saw a golden figure, which for what I imagined was made by Apuleius or our modern author that talks about the golden donkey. This figure sat in the middle of the stone leaning with its back to a tall Cornucopia filled with useless flowers and fruits and it was playing a pipe; it was surrounded by playful little monkeys, which were dancing in pairs».

Satire is able to describe complex concepts with immediacy; for this reason when talking about ‘pipers' and fake initiates we have chosen an image from the first of three volumes* of the Treaty of Metallic transmutation by Nazari G. Battista (1599) from Brescia.

In the volume that deals with false sophistic transmutation , on page 16 we find a xylograph that ridicules the proselytes of false initiations who playfully dance to the tune of the donkey, which represents the bad master that rules their Order.

* Of the Metallic Transmutation, Three Dreams

In the first of them it is dealt with the false sophistic transmutation.

The second deals with the useful transmutation called real usual.

The third deals with the divine transmutation called real Philosophical.

The ‘bad masters' are the ‘fake initiates' which we must recognize in order to avoid them.

The difference between a ‘piper' and an initiate is the same between illusion, dream and reality. But the followers of the ‘pipers' are not always victims. Certainly some of them can't distinguish between true and false; it is also true that many people don't want to see this distinction.

This brings us back to ‘free choice', which is rarely accompanied by intelligence.

‘To be able to choose' is so important that it is the ‘trial' that follows the disciple from his probationary period to the highest achievements. To choose with or without intelligence is a ‘natural selection' that doesn't only involve apprentices but also the most advanced initiates, because the ‘path becomes narrow' and illusions and deceit are more difficult to identify.

There is an initiation and many exoteric initiations, like there is a unique spirituality and many religions. Initiation proceeds from the transmutation of oneself and leads to an extreme consciousness; whilst false transmutations become exoteric initiations which add nothing but intricate dialectic lacework to simple sciolism.

Such different concepts bring a two-fold brotherhood, an esoteric and an exoteric one.

In the exoteric dimension the bad masters can occupy prominent places to deceive who doesn't have the consciousness to find them out yet.

To distinguish the difference between the two Brotherhoods is not difficult, even using only two aspects. Initiatory Brotherhood is discreet, it doesn't practice proselytism but it acts by direct appeals, because its criterion is quality. Exoteric Brotherhood displays a rowdy and self-celebrating visibility; it strongly pursues proselytism because its criterion is quantity.

White Brotherhood doesn't practice proselytism and we believe in the reasons of this attitude.

What would be the point of stimulating the attention of little monkeys interested in chasing roles and titles with pompous names? Paraments, headgear and decorated vestments adorned with enigmatic symbols.

While waiting for them to grow, their acceptance is up to the promoters of symbolic proselytism and the masters of virtuality.

When they grow, they'll find the strength to head towards a true ‘recognition'.