The Order of the Magi

Revelation X, Verses 4, 10 and 11

"And when the Seven Thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write and I heard a voice saying unto me, "Seal up those things uttered by the Seven Thunders, and write them not.""

"And I took the little book from the angel's hand and devoured it and to my taste it was as sweet as honey; but as soon as I devoured it, it became bitter unto my inside."

"And he said unto me, you must prophecy again before many people and nations and tongues and kings."

Thousands of years ago, the Order of the Magi, the brotherhood of astrologers, mystics, and priests of the temples of Atlantis and later Egypt, was instructed to keep secret the ancient, sacred knowledge of the Seven Thunders (the seven visible planets) and the location of this little book (the cards) until the time when humanity would be of the consciousness to understand this occult system of knowledge and the true magic of life. The first publicly known book, "The Mystic Test Book or the Magic of the Cards", by Olney H. Richmond was published in 1893 to reveal the secrets of the little book of knowledge and prophetic wisdom—what we refer to today as our "common" or "ordinary" deck of playing cards. 

The true gifts of the Magi have been cleverly preserved in plain sight in a small unbound book that fits in the palm of your hand. Now, through the use of the internet, this sacred book can be purchased around the world 365/24/7. Every day more and more copies are being printed and variations of the deck are created on every continent. It is written in a language that anyone in any country can decipher. While the individual pages of this mystical book are often used for fun and games, amusement and profit, large fortunes have been won and lost without any understanding of the divine revelations of the hidden meanings held within.

The word magic is derived from the word magi. The Magi were the seers of old who held the secrets of the universe and could foretell the future with their understanding of the planets, numbers and signs. Some refer to the Magi as the "King Makers" of the Middle East, including Persia, because of the power and knowledge they held.

As instructed, the Magi have preserved this "little book" of Iife—a book that contains our destiny. The little book is actually an encoded fractal system, revealing the code of creation for all our lives. This secret and highly revered system of ancient knowledge, made up of emblems, colors and numbers, containing the very structure of time, our thoughts, and our experiences from birth to death, is now available to us today.

Richmond wrote in Chapter 1 of his "The Mystic Test Book", "No other book that ever had an existence upon our planet, has within itself the wonderful properties that are indubitably attached to this little book. No other "book" has been so "sealed" with hidden emblematic meanings as to defy all attempts to "open" its pages. It is the oldest book known and it existed long before the modern written languages were thought of. Its history extends so far back into the dim recesses of the past, that we must per force ask our readers to take circumstantial evidence as to its early history and uses."

Thanks to Olney Hawkins Richmond, this secret and most sacred system of ancient knowledge is now available for all who want to know the intricacies and true divine sacredness of their life, their cards, and their personal destiny.

The following is from Richmond's book, "Temple Lectures of the Order of the Magi":

The Order of the Magi.

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WHY IT HAS EXPERIENCED A REVIVAL IN THIS CENTURY.

 ———o——— 

The Brotherhood of Magic — The Truth Always Distasteful to a Large Part of Mankind — The "Three Wise Men" — Following a Star — The Truth — Suppressed by the Priesthood — The Magi, the Conservators of True History — The Great Masonic Departure — Keepers of the Word — Landmark of

Prophecy — The Coming Light.

 ———o——— 

WE have had hundreds of questions asked covering these points, and we will answer them as plainly as possible. The order has always, since its very inception, ages and ages ago, dealt in magic, in mystic emblems and numbers. The name Magi, plural, and Magus, singular, and Magea, a commander in magic, all come from the same root. All that was wonderful in nature, and at the same time not generally understood, was regarded as mystical, and therefore, magical, and came within the province of this order.

For thousands and thousands of years the priests and masters of mystic lore were a power in the land. They were the conservators of knowledge that had been gathered by patient and laborious research, carried on by sworn brothers, through a period of time which compared with our so-called historical epoch, was long. Knowing the magic power possessed by these masters, even kings feared them, and therefore sought to placate them by grants of money, lands and emoluments.

From the books handed down to us from past times, we can gain but little true history of this wonderful order, for the very good reason that the manuscripts, scrolls,  etc., which did give a true history, have been hidden and destroyed; while the ones preserved were invariably written by enemies of the order, to-wit, the church. By “the church” we do not mean any particular religious body, but all dealers in so-called “revealed” religion.

Inasmuch as the fundamental belief and teaching of the Magi has always been that the “universe is governed by law,” a doctrine that has been enunciated by thousands of philosophers in our own day, it has, of course, followed that the dealers in a system  that teaches that the universe is governed by capricious gods and devils, that can be placated or subsidized, by properly approaching them, into changing the natural course  of nature, have invariably been our bitter enemies.

What could be expected? The truth has always been bitter to a large proportion of mankind. Let any man promulgate a new system of philosophy, and he was rewarded  with a cup of poison, the stake, or the dungeon. Every newly-found truth must run the gauntlet of scorn and vilification. It is even so unto this day, only the teeth and claws of the monster, Ignorance, have been blunted to such an extent that they cannot rend and tear as in days of yore.

After the fall of Atlantis, Egypt became the theatre of the exploits of the Brotherhood of Magic, and they arose, during a period of several thousands of years, to a position nearly as grand as that once reached by their brothers of Atlantis. Everything that could be written or said to belittle this noble order, was industriously gathered and saved; but in spite of all, a little here and a little there, of fact, has crept into ancient writings, prophecies, etc., which show to us a glimpse of the truth.

Do you suppose for a moment that the church would have allowed the account to pass into history, of the fact that Jesus was discovered by a committee of three of the so-called “wise men of the East,” had it not have been in their anxiety to obtain proofs of the divinity of Jesus, of which they were sorely in need? And see how the account has been garbled by the rendering. Instead of stating the fact, which was that the Magi followed the teachings of the stars in the finding of Jesus, and took their direction of travel from a certain star while making that long and eventful journey, we have the absurd statement that they “followed a star,” which evidently, according to the text, went ahead, and “stood over” the child until the brothers caught up (Math. 9, 10).

Then again, how much pains have been taken to conceal the fact that Jesus was taken to Egypt and there became learned in the science and knowledge of past ages, to be found only within the sacred temples of the magi. That would never do, to admit that Jesus received his knowledge, and, therefore, power, from the magi, would be fatal to the pretensions of the parties interested.

Consequently, every one of the “gospels” extant up to the year a.d. 400, that set forth the facts in the case, were suppressed. Some of these gospels relate, in a minute manner the childhood of Jesus and his life in Egypt. But, strange to say, the gospel, according to Matthew was allowed to remain, where a short account is given of the arrival of the wise men and the departure of Jesus for Egypt (Math. II, 10 to 15.). St. Luke says (I, 80): “And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.” In other words, Jesus was away beyond certain desert countries in Egypt until he was a full-grown man.

Mark and John quietly skip over all responsibility by bringing Jesus onto the stage of action at full manhood. It is wonderful, though, how a reading between the lines will reveal to a Mystic so much that the church could not understand. Read St. John I, 14, and see how that writer regarded Christ as a fleshly representative of the Word; in other words, a possessor of the sacred word.

In later years, scientific writers of textbooks for our schools, in their anxiety to cater to the believers in supernatural religion, have deliberately suppressed facts regarding  the deep knowledge possessed by our sacred order in ancient times. In not one astronomy of a later date than 1840, that I have ever seen, can be found an acknowledgment that  the true system of the motion of the planets about the sun was known and taught in the temples of Egypt ages before the days of Copernicus, whom they credit with the discovery; but in astronomical works published prior to 1840, credit is given where it belongs. Ryan’s astronomy, a very exhaustive work on mathematical astronomy, published, I think in 1831, is one of the works that honestly gives due credit to the Magi. For more minute reference to this, see lecture “Looking Backward” (Lecture II).

It has always been easy for the promulgators of falsehood to suppress the advocates of truth. By a strange law of nature, the truth always has to stand on its own merits.  Those who stand for the truth never “strike back.” Did you ever hear of a person being tortured on the rack to make him admit a belief in a scientific truth? Was a man ever burned at the stake because he would not believe that the earth was round, or that the sun was the true center of our system? Never! While the supporters of lies have carried them to the hearts of the people upon the points of millions of blood-dripping swords, spears and bayonets, the advocates of truth have quietly plodded onward, secretly meeting in caves and underground crypts, ever satisfied that in time truth would prevail. And they were right. It will prevail in the long run.

As regards scientific facts, we might say relative to the average churchman:

Truth presents to us so frightful a mien,

That to be hated needs but to be seen;

But seen too oft, encountered face to face,

We hesitate, then pity, then embrace.

Every scientific truth has had to run the gauntlet of: “That does not agree with our holy scriptures.” But we notice that when the fact is so firmly established that there is no shaking it; our theologians quickly discover that it “agrees exactly with scripture.”

Had not the true and original secret order, based upon astral law, been changed into an order that professed to take its inspiration form the Jewish bible, and did substitute words taken from that book for the true, grand word and all the minor pass-words, we would not have to-day the great and grand order denominated Masonry; which order has preserved much to us that would otherwise have been lost. The Egyptian branch, that did preserve the ancient landmarks and keep to the sacred teachings of our order, were scattered to the four winds of heaven, and reduced to a few here and a few there, who were sworn to, and did, transmit the secret doctrines from mouth to ear down through all the dark centuries of ignorance that supervened.

Even the Masonic departure, which took place at the building of King Solomon’s Temple, came very near being annihilated during certain periods. The church was ever suspicious of the lodge; but, by adding new degrees from time to time, that catered more and more to the church, the leaders of the order have managed to keep it up. Change it however, as they may, the old harlot of Revelation will not recognize it, and many of her children follow her lead.

As a fraternal association, the Masonic order is a decided success, both morally and financially; but as an association reaching beyond mere earthly things and fitting one for the great hereafter, its most ardent devotees would hardly claim it.

As the secret knowledge of the Magi has been handed down the ages from one unto another, the ones who have held their place in the line have been called the “Keepers of the Word.” In some instances the number of “Keepers” have fallen so low as three, although an effort has been made to keep the number up to seven at all times.

Wars and pestilence have sometimes nearly cut off the succession, but according to ancient prophecy the secret doctrines have been kept alive down to this day, when the “books were to be opened” and “certain signs” should indicate the coming of light once more to this earth.

When the writer was approached by the brother in Nashville, Tenn., in 1864, he had no more knowledge of mystic light than a child. Even after I had been instructed in the Word and its use, and initiated as well as circumstances would admit, as a mystic, all was yet blind, and I was obliged to await the time when more would be unfolded to me. That time arrived without volition on my part, and all was brought about in accordance with prophetic records.

How surprised we are, when we find that what we have been doing apparently with perfect freedom of will, was all fore-ordained, as it were, and predicted years before. We ought not to be surprised at it, but we cannot help it. We are all instruments for the operation of divine law, and we cannot but fulfill our destiny. The one who is called upon to fill the highest place in the glorious work deserves no more praise than he who fills the lowest place. It is his destiny, that is all.

Why has the light of Oriental Mysticism come back to the world just at this time? The answer is this: Because the world was not in a condition to receive it before. Certain mathematical knowledge had to come first; certain astronomical discoveries and certain instruments had to be made; some person must be born who had a combination of certain qualities necessary in the work; not better or grander qualities than those possessed by millions of others, but peculiar in their combination.

Then, lastly, the world must be slowly prepared for the light. This preparation has been going on steadily since 1833, when the last sign in the heavens came to pass. The year 1844 was another landmark of ancient prophecy, and the culmination of the outpouring of the spirit for forty-five years took place in 1889, when the books were opened and the first modern temple established upon the earth.

The “Star of the East” once more rises to guide the mystic traveler upon his way; while the light of the rising sun guilds the pyramids of Egypt with a Golden Light.

What the Magi Teach.

 ———o——— 

THE CLASS OF PEOPLE THEY APPEAL TO.

 ———o——— 

The Universal Principle — The Great Magnet — Folly of Creeds — The Religion of Blood — Materialism Run Mad — Spiritism Gone Crazy — Transcendentalism, Christian Science,  and Theosophy Considered — Erroneous Spiritual Teachings — The Secret Doctrine,  What is it — Light of Atlantis and America.

 ———o——— 

This is a subject of vital importance to all those who take an interest in the order and think of becoming members. The Magi believe and teach that the Universe is made up of two great principles of an opposite nature, namely, spirit and matter. We might  say psychic force and material force, although the terms are more obscure, because all matter and all spirit are simply forms of vibratory force. These two great principles are like opposite polarities of the same magnet. Both poles belong to the same magnet and meet and neutralize in the middle thereof, yet the manifestations are different and in fact quite opposite in some particulars.

Thus we find that the terms spirit and matter stand for one great universal principle with two polarities.

We teach that intelligent beings must recognize both states of the principle, and that any system of philosophy that does not recognize these facts, is defective, and must fall sooner or later. To spirit belongs the high and fine vibratory forces that constitute the mind, intelligent thought, emotion, etc., that go to make up the spirit side of man. The material belongs to the lower vibratory forces that constitute the body we live in, and through which the indwelling spirit or soul makes itself manifest.

Just so the whole universe—for man is a type or epitome of the universe—is  made up of these two great principles.

“The universe is one stupendous whole,

Whose body nature is and God the soul.”

This oft-quoted couplet is a grand fact, and a man wrote it who had the true  mystic mind. The great trouble of mankind in all ages has been to properly separate these two principles, giving both their true signification and not mixing them up in their systems of philosophy and religion. The speaker has been astounded many times by the utter lack of all understanding of the true nature of various causes and effects, evinced by many persons and even entire schools. For instance, the Christian and Jewish faiths mix spirit and matter most wonderfully. God, who, as the Infinite, occupies the most ultra spirit  end of the spectrum celestia, is believed in as a material being with limbs, “parts and passions,” and occupying a material throne in a material heaven, with streets paved with one of the materials which belong at the other end among the most ponderable bodies, to wit, gold.

The part saved of man, when he becomes finally fit to enter this material heaven,  is nothing but the body. The body—the blood—is the burden of the scriptures. Is it any wonder that a certain popular preacher said a few years ago: “If you mark all the passages of the scriptures that speak of blood with red ink, you will find the sacred book a stream of blood from end to end.”

Christ, a pure principle, meaning the same as Christna (sic) of the Hindus or Osiris of the Egyptians, is made to be, and is, worshipped as a material being. If this is not genuine materialism, and a materialism run mad at that, then what is it?

On the other hand, certain actions of men which have their origin in purely material surroundings and belong on the material plane, are erroneously ascribed to “bad spirits” or devils. Fits or spasms caused by an irritation in the spine, or by worms in the intestinal canal, were called spirits, or the work of spirits, “and cast out” by charms and incantations. If this is not Spiritism; and a mad article at that, what is it?

But the church-man is not the only one who confounds this great principle in its two modes of manifestation. The ordinary material philosopher, or so-called scientist, looks only at the material universe, and denies everything that he cannot see, feel or weigh. He denies spirit or any intelligent force or vibration only that of matter. Some materialists are so set in their belief that all a person has to do is to let them know that he believes in a future state of existence to be set down as a crank, almost outside the pale of human sympathy.

As an offset to this class, we have the new schools of transcendentalism and Christian science, who go to the other extreme and declare that matter does not exist—matter is all moonshine. We think we exist on a world, but it is a huge mistake. We think a part of our so-called system is out of order and think we have a pain, but we have no system and no pain. “There is nothing material.”

Of course I am giving only the views of the most ultra teachers of these schools. Ah! my good friends, I love you and respect you, but I fear me you are too much to the other end of the great magnet. Another great class that have come to the front during  the last few years, and have been especially prolific in literature, is the Theosophist. This school of thinkers have a vein of spiritual truth running all the way through their teachings that in a measure leavens the whole lump; but I trust that all of that school who read this, will forgive me when I say that the mixing of spirit and what is of spirit, with matter and what is of matter, is very great in nearly all theosophic works.

Within the past week I have read in a theosophic work by a noted writer, that “the earth itself may be thrown out of her just equilibrium of forces by the stupendous will perversions of an earthly potentate,” etc. My friends, when this old earth is thrown out of her equilibrium of forces, such as magnetism and gravatic forces, or, in fact, any other natural force through the power of any man’s will, I want to be there to see it.

In the same book, which I open at random, I find that “The Atlantians, gradually becoming addicted to the practice of an infernal magic, used their super-physical powers unlawfully. They allied themselves with death instead of with life co-operating with nature on her side of destruction; and thus, we are told, brought upon themselves the engulfing floods of oblivion.”

What a far-fetched spiritual reason to give a catastrophe that was as natural and material in its nature as is the fall of an over-ripe apple or a dead leaf. Atlantis sank beneath the waves of the Atlantic Ocean, as Mr. Donnelly so ably shows, under the same material forces, aquaus* (“aqueous”) and volcanic, that have heretofore and will hereafter level continents, raise islands and otherwise change the face of the world.

What is the use of attributing a spiritual origin to a natural material state of matter? Matter and spirit have always existed in perfect correlation to each other. One has just as much right to exist as the other, and we must recognize the fact.

I have also found the most astounding theories abounding in Theosophic works relative to the nature of man’s spirit. “Shells” and “astral envelopes,” over-souls and in-souls, and several other parts of man’s spirit, floating about on earth and in the heavens. My dear friends, I do not say one word against those who believe and teach such doctrines; I do not set down one word in malice, but for heaven’s sake do not trouble your heads  over any such complicated spirit to man. Ask those who teach it to prove it.

Another thing I must call your attention to is the erroneous teachings of some Spiritualists. I allude to no particular one. Some teach that the only thing really worth knowing is spirit. Let a scientist endeavor, after years of study of the subject, to show that the fact of man’s future existence is perfectly consonant and harmonious with true science, and that the more we know of the scientific laws that govern matter and mind, the more  we know regarding a future state of life; let him, as I say, endeavor to instill this truth into the minds of men and many will cry out in public and private: “Oh he is on the material plane,” or “science is the greatest enemy of Spiritualism.”

Friends, I don’t deny it. Science is the greatest foe the churches ever had; but Spiritualism need not fear science. Science is nothing but demonstrated truth, and truth can hurt no true and good thing. The only thing a truth will not fit into is an untruth. Truth fits truth like the stones in the Pyramid of Cheops, square and true, jointed like a  fine piece of cabinet work.

A three-cornered lie may be made to fit in for a time, by plastering it well with the plaster of sophistry and the cement of ignorance, but as soon as investigation is made with the hammer of science the cement loosens and the stone falls from its place, leaving a hole in the structure.

The people we appeal to for our work are those who have advanced to a point where the ism they have hitherto professed does not seem to fill their hearts and souls. We do not ask any person to give up a single good or a single truth. Keep all you have and add all the good and true you can get thereunto.

THE SECRET DOCTRINE; WHAT IS IT?

It is Christianity, with the absurdities of a bodily resurrection, a material heaven, an endless hell and many other matters of the kind left out. It is Theosophy, with the wild and untenable speculations of dreamers and absurdities wrapped in uncouth Sanscrit and Hindoo terms, to conceal their nakedness, omitted. It is Spiritualism of the highest type, with the false communications and ignorant teachings of unadvanced beings on the other side ignored. It is science, minus the short-sighted and unscientific mode of investigation, which places a limit on infinity and stops short at the point where man’s very limited physical senses cease.

It is Transcendentalism in its best form, which ignores nothing real, while giving due prominence to will force and mind, or the psychic powers. It also takes due cognizance of the physical universe, without which spirit could not manifest itself or gain in progressive knowledge or experience.

In short, we appeal to that large and growing class of thinkers who have become tired of old theories and have therefore arrived at a fit state of development to appreciate the Light of Atlantis and America. 

[This article can be found in Temple Lectures of the Order of the Magi by Olney H. Richmond available for sale in our IAC Online Store: https://cardology.org/shop/ols/products/temple-lectures-by-olney-h-richmond]