With this post we are introducing a new feature at Pansophers.com! Visitors to the site are now able to view or download instructions for contemplative and theurgical practices relevant to the Rosicrucian tradition. Our first offering is The Transforming Cross: A Program in Rosicrucian Psychospiritual Alchemy. Here is an excerpt:
Many of us have a deeply intuitive sense that there is far more to our being than we are typically encouraged to consider. We may even feel a yearning, if not a compelling drive, to act on that intuition. Like the instinct of a caterpillar, it calls us to enter the chrysalis of transformation so that we might emerge, like butterflies, in the colorful fulfillment of our potentials. Yet, we often find that society at large does little to support us in actually penetrating the veils of ordinary existence, or in beginning to explore the mysteries of the soul and our intimate connections with Nature and God. The doctrines, dogmas, and methods of common religion do not entirely meet our needs in this regard, and so we may be drawn to learn about things like meditation, contemplation, metaphysics, and theurgy. In the process, some of us have become powerfully attracted to the Rosicrucian tradition and its connection with the Great Work of transforming the soul and the world. If you feel this attraction, then the Transforming Cross might be a meaningful and productive way of engaging with that tradition.
In keeping with Rosicrucian tradition, the Transforming Cross combines concepts, symbols, and practices from mystical Christianity, alchemy, and Qabalah. It is designed to take the practitioner through a series of operations corresponding to the alchemical phases of nigredo (blackness), albedo (whiteness), citrinitas (yellowness), and rubedo (redness). These are the phases of the Great Work, through which the raw fragmented material of the elements of the soul are refined and reintegrated into the Universal Medicine represented by a rose and cross conjoined.
The Transforming Cross does not require adherence to Christian religion, but only a willingness to work with the concepts, language, and symbolism of Christian mysticism. It is helpful if you find some inspiration in the story of Jesus, the messages he preached and the qualities he exemplified, but personal freedom of interpretation is herein respected and affirmed.
The program is designed for complete novices as well as persons who already have a working familiarity with Qabalah, psychospiritual alchemy, and Christian mysticism. In fact, completion of this program can serve as a form of self-initiation into the Rosicrucian tradition.
If you are interested in seeing the program for yourself, then click here to download the PDF. If you choose to work through the Transforming Cross, then please know that you are welcome to share your experiences, insights, and questions in our Rosicrucian Tradition Facebook group.
