ByVal aha FROM bes Masters AND THE AFFLATUS OF THE eer wal NINTH DEGREE Confidential Discourse NUMBER ONEGreetings, Brethren of the Veil! Centuries ago (the definite time has never been established), there was founded the most unusual Order named “The Order of the Illuminati.” His- torians not associated with hermetic brotherhoods speculated as to both its origin and nature. They say Menendez Pelayo first found the name of the Order in 1492; but traced it back, he claimed, to an early gnostic origin in Spain. The movement was found then to have spread to France from Seville in 1693 and attained large proportions. These his- torians go on to relate that in 1537 the Order rose to prominence known as “The Iluminati,” profess- ing, also, to be Rosicrucians and tracing their origin back beyond 1422. Richard et Giraud wrote an extensive treatise in 1614 on their activities, alleging them to be a secret society combining with the mysteries of alchemy the study of higher esoteric principles. The Order, it is recognized, had branches in most of the coun- tries of the civilized world, and attracted such men as Goethe and Herder; as well as persons of royalty and nobility. The name “Illuminati” was assigned to the Order because its members were said to be enlightened, or illumined, having peculiar discernment of the Cosmic Divine principles. According to the true history, known to the mystery or hermetic schools, it was mainly composed of Rosicrucians; but it g also numbered in its membership those affili- a O32, ated with other humanitarian, esoteric, and oD spiritual orders. It is not commonly known 0, Gees.that ONLY THOSE who had been ILLUMINED, who attained a state of highly evolved conscious- ness, or who had studied the mysteries of nature and the Cosmic and acquired a certain spiritual at- ‘tainment were cligible to membership in the order. ‘Thus, those of every order regardless of the length of time of thelr afiliation with their respec- tive Order, if they had been blessed with an afflatus, would be admitted into this secret and honorable body of “The [uminati.” The Iluminati recognized all Postulants in the Rosterucian Order who had dili- gently studied and eventually reached a certain Degree in the Order, as being eligible for member- ship in the Tiuminati. ‘This Hermetic Order, The Muminati, still flour- ishes today, and in due time you will learn of its existence and of its officers, and how the humble and sincere of the present may share in its sacred privileges and knowledge. It may interest you to know of what this affla- tus consisted, this Divine exaltation, or inspiration, which one had, and which entitled one to member- ship in the Iuminati. A study, made of the Supreme oificers of esoteric orders of the Cosmically inspired revelations had by their membership, revealed that the iumined ones many times had truly made contact with one of the’ invisible host of Masters. Sometimes, through them would be transmitted ‘words of profound wisdom, later to be found as hav- ing been written in manuscript form by a great Master before his transition, and then lost to the world to be later rediscovered. At other times the writing of the Masters, left in code and unintelli- gible, would be translated through a secret code or cole Words revealed in one of these Cosmfc revela- tions, ‘The Rosicrucian Order, AMORC, has collected in its archives a number of these fraginents from the Masters obtained in just this manner. Some of these fragments in the past have been published, and still others have not. ‘Then, there are those who did not, through the period of TMumination, bring back into the conscious mind fragments of truth uttered by the Masters who had gone before. They, instead, had divinely cestatic experiences of dwelling in consciousness in the Cosmic. So beau- tiful, so elevating, and transcendent are their nar- ratives, that they momentarily lift us far beyond the mundane, and permit us glimpses of tho splen- dor of Cosmic Consciousness. It is, therefore, a pleasnre to pass on to you periodically in this Degree of the Veiled Prophet some fragments from the Masters, cosmically re- vealed, 06 well as to relate the Cosmie experiences of those who have been illumined. Some of these confidential discourses will consist solely of fragments from the Masters; others will in addition relate the Cosmic sensations and experi- ences of the privileged, It is our sincere hope that this special feature will become an incentive for you to acquire the state of personal development which makes this true heaven on earth possible. This unusual feature of membership is afforded only to those of the Ninth Degree. Fraternally yours in the Bonds of Fellowship, Imperator. &