Eliphas Lévi and the French Occult Revival

10. The Magician

10 The Magician The autumn of 1854 found Eliphas Levi living in a first-floor apartment at 120 Boulevard du Montparnasse, consisting of a single modest room. Besides the scanty pieces of furniture there was an easel, for once again he had fallen back on his talents as an illustrator when times were hard. A Carmelite community in the Rue d'Enfer had commissioned him to paint a series of tableaux. Another plan he had conceived-to illustrate the works of Rabelais-was forestalled when Gustave Dore's illustrations of the work appeared. Skilled as he was, Levi could hardly hope to compete with the great Dore, and he had to abandon the project. But soon literary work began to take precedence again. In 1855 he founded, in collaboration with Charles Fauvety and Charles Lemmonier, a monthly called La Revue philosophique et religieuse, to which he contributed poetry and articles on the Cabala. This periodical lasted for only three years, but it helped to spread hisreputation.In addition, hisDogme and itscompanion volume the Rituel de la magie continued to enjoy a large demand and went through edition after edition. Attracted by his growing reputation, an increasing number of visitors made the pilgrimmage to his door. One of these callers came in his eagerness at an early hour of the morning and his knock awakened Levi from his sleep. He opened the door to an unknown person. 'It was a man with white hair, entirely clothed in black; his physiognomy that ofan extremely devout priest; his whole air, in short, was entirely worthy of respect.' Levi continues the story as follows in the eIe des grandes mysteres: , 'This ecclesiastic was furnished with a letter of recommendation conceived in these terms: 106 Eliphas Levi and the French Occult Revival Dear Master, This is to introduce to you an old savant who wants to gabble Hebrew sorcery with you. Receive him like myself-I mean as I myself received him-by getting rid of him in the best way you can. Entirely yours, in the sacrosanct Quabalah, AD. DESBARROLLES' 'Reverend sir,' said Eliphas, smiling, after having read the letter, 'I am entirely at your service, and can refuse nothing to the friends who writes to me. You have then seen my excellent disciple Desbarrolles?' 'Yes, sir, and I have found him a very amiable and very learned man. I think both you and him worthy of the truth which has been lately revealed by astonishing miracles, and the positive revelations ofthe Archangel St. Michael.' 'Sir, you do us honour. Has then the good Desbarrolles astonished you by his science?' 'Oh, certainly he possesses in a very remarkable degree the secrets of cheiromancy; by merely inspecting my hand, he told me nearly the whole story of my life.' 'He is quite capable of that. But did he enter into the smallest details?' 'Sufficiently, sir, to convince me of his extraordinary power. 'Did he tell you that you were once the vicar of Mont-Louis, in the diocese of Tours? That you are the most zealous disciple ofthe ecstatic Eugene Vintras? And that your name is Charvoz?' It was a veritable thunderbolt; at each of these three sentences the old priest jumped in his chair. When he heard his name he turned pale and rose as ifa spring had been released. 'You are then really a magician?' he cried; 'Charvoz is certainly my name, but it is not that which I bear; I call myself La Paraz.' 'I know it; La Paraz is the name of your mother. You have left a sufficiently enviable position, that of a country vicar, and your charming vicarage, in order to share the troubled existence ofa sectary.' 'Say, of a great prophet!' 'Sir, I believe perfectly in your good faith. But you will permit me to examine a little the mission and the character of your prophet.' The Magician 107 'Yes, sir; examination, full light, the microscope of science, that is all we ask. Come to London, sir, and you will see! The miraclesare permanently established there.' 'Would you be so kind, sir, as to give me, first of all, some exact and conscientious details with regard to the miracles?' 'Oh, as many as you like!' And immediately the old priest began to recount things which the whole world would have found impossible, but which did not even turn an eyelash of the Professor of Transcendental Magic...