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Karl
von Eckartshausen (1752-1803).
Written and compiled by George Knowles
One
of the greatest influences on theological and philosophical thought of the 18th
century, was the writings of a little known author called ‘Karl von
Eckartshausen’. Popular during
his own time, he was a prolific writer of books, papers and articles covering
such subjects as: the Sciences, fine Art, Drama, Politics, Religion and History,
though over time, many of these have been forgotten.
He is perhaps best known in esoteric circles for his writings about
Magic, Alchemy and the properties of Numbers, of which his most influential book
was ‘The Cloud upon the Sanctuary’. This
was the book that influenced such people as A.E. Waite (indeed it was Waite who
wrote the introduction to its current printing) and other members of the ‘Order
of the Golden Dawn’, most particularly the infamous Aleister
Crowley. Eckartshausen
was born in a Bavarian castle called Haimbhausen on the 28th June
1752. He was the illegitimate son
of Count Carl of Haimbhausen and his union with the daughter of his estate
overseer, Marie Anne Eckhart. His
mother died during childbirth, and because of his illegitimacy, he would later
be unable to take the Count’s name and title.
In his mother’s honour, the Count therefore joined her name to his and
called him Eckartshausen, but the stigma of his birth would always remain with
him. Because of
this, his father used all his power and prestige to help and support his son,
and took great pains to ensure he received the best of educations.
Eckartshausen’s early life seems to have been filled with melancholy,
and at the age of seven is said to have experienced dreams of a prophetic and
mystical nature, as well as having visions.
This led him to a tendency to withdraw from the world at large and seek
solitude, a characteristic that endeared him to his family and friends.
Despite this early reticence, he was destined for a career of some public
importance. He
was first educated at the college of Munich, and in 1770 entered the University
of Ingolstadt for the study of Philosophy and Law.
Taught by a mainly Jesuit faculty, Eckartshausen excelled in all his
studies and finished four years later with University honours and a Doctors
Degree of Divinity. His father then
procured for him an honorary position as Aulic Advisor and Councillor to the
supreme court of the emperor, the Bavarian Prince Elector, Karl Theodor.
In
1777, Eckartshausen was admitted to the Academy of Sciences in Munich, and
applied himself to further academic studies in natural sciences.
While there he developed a friendship with the academy’s Director of
History, Ferdinand von Sterzinger. Like
himself, Sterzinger was interested in the hidden meanings of Magic, Alchemy and
Phenomena. Together they undertook
a series of physical and alchemical experiments, the results of which would
influence the rest of Eckartshausen’s life and work. His
position to high office was confirmed in 1779, when he was appointed to a
salaried post as Censor of the Library at Munich.
As censor, he specialized in Criminology and was charged with the
revision of Laws and Literature. His
work helped to shape his ideals and influenced him greatly, so much so that he
became a defender of the weak and suppressed.
That same year he married a lady called Genoveva Quiquérez about whose
origins are unknown. Sadly the
marriage was short lived, for she died of unknown causes just two years later.
After her death in 1781, he married again.
This time to Gabriela von Wolter, daughter of Johann Anton von Wolter,
the personal doctor to the Prince Elector,
and director of the Medical faculty at
the University. Soon afterwards a
baby daughter was born, named Sophia Teresia Gabriela. In
1784 he was promoted again and raised to the affluent office of Keeper of the
Archives of the Electoral House, a position especially conferred upon him by the
Prince Elector. His early rise to such high office and affluence, caused him
many enemies among those less fortunate, but his favour and closeness with the
Prince Elector protected him. Despite
his dissenters and high office, privately, Eckartshausen remained a man of
virtue and high integrity, and donated much of his wealth to the poor and needy.
His work as
censor and archivist, to which he devoted much of his time, also allowed him to
read and study widely. He was a
prolific writer and authored well over a hundred articles, producing such varied
papers as: The practical and
systematic organization of the Principal Archives in general, The Moral
Teachings for the Bavarian Citizen, Concerning the Source of Crimes and the
Possibility of Prevention and Music of the Eyes or the Harmony of Colours.
At the same time he also took an interest in theatre and wrote a number
of plays and drama’s, the most popular of which was called:
‘The Prejudice of Birth’. A
religious man, Eckartshausen he was profoundly interested in metaphysical,
theosophical and religious though, and in 1788, published
a major work entitled: Magic:
Principles of Higher Knowledge. His
other major works included: God
is the Purest Love – 1790
(perhaps his most popular book at the time, said to have reached sixty
editions when published in Germany, as well as being translated into Latin and
most other European languages), Mystic Nights - 1791, and The Most
Important Hieroglyphs for the Human Heart – 1796.
Many of these works are now forgotten and reside on dusty shelves in old
museums and libraries, occasionally taken down and dusted for the interest of
academics. Eckartshausen
died on the 13th May 1803 after a painful illness, and while most of
his writings have now been forgotten, he left a lasting legacy, which still
remains and inspires us today. Just
before his death he published ‘The Cloud upon the Sanctuary – 1802’.
A.E. Waite in his introduction to the current edition describes it as:
“The crowning production of his intellectual life”: “The Cloud upon the Sanctuary has, I believe, always remained in the memory of a few, and is destined still to survive, for it carries with it a message of deep significance to all those who look beneath the body of religious doctrine for the one principle of life which energizes the whole organism”.
End.
Sources:
Introduction to The Cloud upon the Sanctuary - by A.E. Waite. Plus
numerous websites to many to mention
First published on the 04th March 2007, 18:22:05 © George Knowles
Best wishes and Blessed Be
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