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Book Review (Book critique)

By Dieter Rueggeberg

Emil Stejnar
Franz Bardon
Ibera Verlag Vienna 2010
Price: 25.00 Euro

Stejnar page 15: Interview in Gnostika – Stejnar: “Unfortunately there is a lot written about Bardon
which is not true. For example he didn’t author the novel “Frabato”, but it was Mrs. Votova who also
typed the other books which Bardon personally or via audio-tape dictated to her (page 16). Mrs. Pravica
mentioned many times that he didn’t like the Manuscript ("Frabato”) and that it was, in contrast to the
other three volumes, not published during his life time but after his death. The edited version was
surely not read by him (Bardon); he was arrested one week before it was given to him.”

Rueggeberg: Concerning this I wrote the following in the new edition of “Frabato”: “Increasingly more
and more books about Franz Bardon and his work are published which contain allegations which are
not true. For example it is claimed the novel “Frabato” was solely written by Mrs. Otti Votova and that
Franz Bardon has never seen it. The fact however is, that Franz Bardon, already, in a letter of the 30.
September 1957 wrote to Mrs. Pravica that the manuscript has been delivered to Publisher Hermann
Bauer. It is therefore impossible that Franz Bardon did not know the content of “Frabato”.

Mr. Dr. M.K. has read my version of “Frabato” and attested that everything is based on truth.
Untruths do not become truths even if the untruth is repeated ten times! Besides this, with Dr. M.K., I
also touched on the assumption that the work “Practice of magical Evocation” contains some errors.
To this Dr. M.K responded only that any corrections would not be necessary. Dr. M.K. was a student
of Franz Bardon for more than 10 years and assisted Franz Bardon with his stage appearances.
Therefore I can put more trust in his judgment than that of other persons who did not personally
know Franz Bardon.”

The proving sentence is in a letter by Franz Bardon to Maria Pravica dated 30. September 1957 reads
as follows: “Otherwise everything with us is as before, frantic tempo and not much time. Perhaps Otti
has already written to you that my novel in manuscript form is already with Bauer (Publisher), ready
to be printed. Perhaps Otto mentioned to you also that we are already working on a film-script of the
novel.”

Even in 2011 miracles happen. On the 15. of July 2011 I received among other papers a copy of the
original manuscript of “Frabato” which I did not have at my disposal before. On the last page there is
a handwritten remark by Franz Bardon: “Very well executed”

Stejnar: page 31/32 “The letter which triggered this phenomenon was a letter in which I pointed out to
Mrs. Bardon the errors in the names of the genies and where I asked her if she knew about this”…That
also another letter by to Bardon by me was the reason which proves that she supports my efforts to
correct the errors in his work. I hope that the publisher of “Praxis of magical evocation” finally
understands this.
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Rueggeberg: The publisher of “The practice of magical evocation”, this is me, is however not that
stupid that an unripe student of magic can talk me into some untrue assertions without giving
sufficient substantiation.

Stejnar page 53: “The actual cause of Bardon’s tragic circumstances in his life was presumably the result
of his mission, because he delivered the proof that there is a subtle world not only with his books but
also by his practical magic. Because of this he infringed against the cosmic order of the law of matter,
time and space of the “Lord of the World” by which he (the Lord) secures his reach of power……. In this
world things go according to the will of the Lord of the World and not according to some spiritual rules.”

Rueggeberg: Mr. Stejnar presumes, but he does not know anything about the circumstances of Franz
Bardon’s life, because according to (Stejnar) the statement in “Frabato” cannot be true. Who then is
the by Stejnar mentioned and not defined “Lord of the World”? According to the teachings of Franz
Bardon and by all true Hemeticists, god is the Lord in the Cosmos and nobody else and it is he who
ordains the rules in all the spheres and levels.

Stejnar page 54: “I cannot say what is the cause of the errors concerning names of the genies.”

Rueggeberg: How can Stejnar make such a claim if he cannot give the cause of it? He only has to ask
his own guardian angel or one of the 360 heads of the zone girdling the earth. They will be able to give
him the information.

Stejnar page 56: "He who wants to work successfully in magic has to invest more time in his spiritual
fitness training than a top athlete."

Rueggeberg: This finding is fundamentally true.

Stejnar page 56: “one cannot speed up ones magical development by practicing certain exercise for
hours and hours every day like a fanatic sect (cult) member. He who does not accomplish it in a few
months and it is assumed that only a reincarnated initiate can do this, will not reach this goal even after
a few years of rigorous and ascetic training.”

Rueggeberg: On page 56 Stejnar alleges the exact opposite! This is just as intelligent if as if one claims:
“One cannot improve one’s piano technique if one practices certain exercises daily for hours on and
then still does not become a master pianist in a few months.” Such contradiction can be constantly
found in his explanations.

Stejnar page 69:” “Initiation into Hermetics” has not magical powers as its goal, but strives for perfection
of spirit and soul. To do this one does not need magical abilities.”

Rueggeberg: This is a correct judgment with a false conclusion. Every student of Hermetics knows that
the magical abilities are only accompaniment s of the spiritual development, just as a strong muscle
power is the result of muscle training, ant one cannot be separated from either.

Stejnar page 70: “By “meditation” for hours and hours nobody has ever attained the great
enlightenment. Besides that there are no special instructions or effective practices available which come
out of secret lodge archives, even if this has been promised and even if it is very expensive. The work on
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oneself can in no way be avoided. There is no magical formula, which can shorten the path and no
Mantra can impart special abilities even if they are recited for a very long time.”

Rueggeberg: How does Mr. Stejnar exactly know that Mantras cannot help? Obviously (other great)
initiates have recommended the teachings about Mantras, such as Rudolf Steiner, Karl Brandler-
Pracht, Dr. Georg Lomer, Wilhelm Quintscher and Sivananda. All this carries no weight for him
(Stejnar).

And how does he know, that there are no secret lodge-archives? This is because he is a High Degree
Freemason and he wants to dumb down his readers. About “Freemasonry and Worldview” I have
already written a whole chapter in “Geheimpolitik-2” (Logen Politik) 15 years ago.

Stejnar page 71: “I believe in general, that any form of a believe in God is dangerous. Because at the end
it is always a mental picture that one has about God. Any mental picture that is nourished for a long
time eventually makes itself independent and it creates a powerful demon which is superior to you and
is not a wise, benevolent God as all prefer to have.

Rueggeberg: This statement is philosophical nonsense, because the image one has of God depends on
the spiritual maturity of the person. Only those who have a demonic character create a demon.
Exactly for this reason Franz Bardon demands strict self-knowledge or introspection for a true student
of Hermetics.

Stejnar page 95: Interview with Mr. Ogris: “Stejnar: I do not occupy myself with magic for a long time a
long time. To lead a constructive, successful life, magic is completely unsuitable. It is enough if you work
according to Mulford (a writer) and that you think properly. I guarantee you; your visualizations which
you enliven with the corresponding feelings will cause all your wishes to be fulfilled.”

Rueggeberg: To compare the work of Franz Bardon with that of Mulford is either stupidity or a fraud.
If one wants to truly compare one initiation system with another initiation system then you have to
compare it with one of the initiation systems which are mentioned in my book “Theosophie and
Anthroposophy im Licht der Hermetik”. However the work of Mulford not an initiation system and
covers in relation to the fundamental work of Bardon "Initiation into Hermetic” not even the first 10
steps. Of course with Mulford one cannot fulfill any magical wishes. Everybody knows that who
compares his works (Mulford) with the works of Bardon or Quintscher.

Stejnar page 105: What was that with the mysterious FOGC-Lodge about which is written in “Frabato”.
Did it really exist? Stejnar: I have no clue ….Bardon himself has not at all written about this lodge. He
(Bardon) allegedly was just upset about this novel as I was.

Rueggeberg: Franz Bardon was not upset at all, but he worked already on a film-script for a film,
which on can see from the letter to Mrs. Pravica earlier mentioned. In “Frabato” there is a fairly
detailed description of the FOGC lodge, which Mr. Stejnar wants to discuss away with the above
mentioned untruths.

Stejnar page 112: “By working with the spirit (or spirits) one always differentiates between Quantity and
Quality, between might and power, between energy and characteristic. This is important because
quantity decides about the quality although it has nothing to do with it.
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Rueggebeg: False guess. Quantity decides not over quality but the other way around.

Stejnar page 116: “In spite of this I would not recommend anybody to occupy oneself with magic. I
cannot emphasize enough: Any form of magic is theft of time, nothing will result of it. Nobody has ever
profited from evocation magic or what he thought it is in the long run.”

Rueggeberg: With this Mr. Stejnar suggests that all that which initiates like Rudolf Steiner, Karl
Brandler-Pracht, Wilhelm Quintscher, Georg Lamer, Sivananada and Franz Bardon wrote about magic
is nonsense.

Stejnar page 124: If one writes about Franz Bardon then one has also to mention Baphomet and the
“Freemasonic Order of the Golden Century – FOGC”. Question about this mysterious order arouse the
fantasies of Bardon readers in particular and are asked most often. But the whole thing has nothing to
do with Bardon. He did not write the novel “Frabato”, in which this order was mentioned for the first
time. “Frabato” was not dictated to her by Franz Bardon, but to a large degree written by herself as Mrs.
Votova claims in a letter to the Bauer Verlag (Bardon’s publishers in Germany)

Rueggeberg: This refers to my comment to page 15.

Stejnar page 127: Basically the Tepaphon was nothing else than a magical mirror, as Bardon describes it
in a simplified for in his works.

Rueggeberg: The author wants to make his readers stupid, for Quintscher gives a complete different
description on the construction of a Tepaphone. This is contained under number 21 of the
manuscripts which was issued by the Freemason brother Adolf Hemberger under the title “Magisches
Handbuch Franz Bardons nach den Originalschriften Rah-Omi- Quintschers” in order to prove that
Franz Bardon was a student of W. Quintscher. Since Mr. Stejnar inherited the estate of Hemberger he
should also have a good knowledge of the description (of constructing the Tepaphone).

Stejnar: page 129: “That privileged, spoiled, glorious people are able to make a pact with Baphomet, no
matter what kind of being one imagines what Baphomet is, and even gets assigned helping spirits by him
(Baphomet) I regard as impossible. It is totally absurd to believe that there really were 99 capable High-
Degree Freemasons who are in a position to evoke an Intelligence with such might and power. Among
the High-Degree Freemasons which I know personally - and I know more that ninety-nine brothers – not
one of them would be able to do so. This also applies to the brothers and sisters o the so called irregular
lodges and magical circles, even though there are some who are trying sincerely to practice magic. But
even those would not be in a position, to call a being from another sphere…

Rueggeberg: Here is the proof that Mr. Stejnar is a High-Degree Freemason, otherwise he wouldn’t
know so many of them. Besides that it is not mentioned in “Frabato” that all the brothers of a 99-loge
have to be High-Degree Freemasons. There could also be, for example 99 brothers of the Order of the
Holy Grave, Knights of Malta, Jesuits, Opus Dei, and CIA or of the Mafia.

Stejnar: Ceremonial magic is according to my experience, exactly like alchemy, an activity with which
one is totally obsessed by the idea and who sooner or later confused the mind.
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Rueggeberg: The work “The practice of magical Evocation” is therefore nonsense and leads to spiritual
confusion. However only by those which have not fulfilled the conditions set forth in the work
“Initiation into Hermetics”. This is a fact.

Stejnar page 131: “Also what Bardon describes, can become a trap for the person who really earnestly
works with it, if he or she is not adhering to his instructions and starts too early with magical
experiments. Naturally I am aware that no one adheres to it. I myself have not done it – and survived it
undamaged.

Rueggeberg: Now, I have the impression, that Mr. Stejnar has not survived everything “undamaged”,
otherwise he would not write so many false things about Franz Bardon and Hermetics. Unless he does
it purposely, by order of High-Degree Freemasons, which I absolutely trust that High-Degree
Freemasons could do. It is annoying for the Lodge Brethren of the Rascher Verlag (Rascher Verlag is a
publishing house in Zurich who tried to obtain Bardon’s manuscripts first) were not able to lock up for
good the manuscripts in their iron-save (so they would not see the light of the day anymore).

Stejnar page 134: “The time of magic is over. Whatever you accomplish with magic, if you accomplish it
alone, or with the help of spirits, that you will with certainty loose again.

Rueggeberg: Wrong, the time of magic has only now really begun, since it is not anymore under the
“custody” of lodges and orders, who only allowed access to it, by the elite, for example such
“honorable Men” like Adolf Hitler, Henry Ford, F.D. Roosevelt and W. Churchill. The proof of this are
the works of Rudolf Steiner, Franz Bardon and Wilhelm Quintscher.

Stejnar page l57: “The key to matter is also the key to the spiritual world.”

Rueggeberg: Guessed wrongly, the key to the spiritual world is the key to the material world, because
the material world originated from the spiritual world.

Stejnar page 161: “The Gnostic Hermetics” which I have founded illuminates the path which Franz
Bardon describes and continues from where Franz Bardon ended.”

Rueggeberg: The author should strongly meditate on the qualities of megalomania and humility. Only
a fully ignorant person would believe that the so called “Gnostic Hermetic” cannot add even one
positive sentence. The author therefore tries to lead his readers into spiritual blind alley.

Stejnar page 171: “Spirit manifests itself in the form of imaginations, thoughts and feelings. As well,
one’s own spirit and as well as the other spirits consist of these elemental cell-beings.”

Rueggeberg: Then what are “elemental cell-beings”? The initiation books of R. Steiner, K. Brandler-
Pracht, Sivananda and Franz Bardon do not know such cells. For this reason I must suppose that this is
an invention of Mr. Stejnar.

---

Stejnar page 174: THE PATH IS THE GOAL. – In conclusion an advice for everybody who is on the path
which Franz Bardon shows. This path has no goal. …Even self-perfection as goal is obstructive, firstly
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because one wants by following this path something for oneself and secondly because such efforts do
not seldom degenerate in fanaticism

Rueggeberg: This is a stultification of the readers, to claim that the path of Franz Bardon has no goal.
Naturally the “self-perfection” against which Stejnar argues, is not a goal of many but it is the main-
goal. Such goals by the people are of course of no use to Freemasonry, because “the work on the
rough ashlar” is reserved for the brothers of the alleged elite.

Stejnar page 175: Hardly anybody will perform the exercises so conscientiously and systematic as
Bardon demands it, except it is that in his previous life he was an initiate. ……… The normal mortal,
unless he is a model pupil, will after a few weeks or a few months become sloppy and starts to have
doubts if he ever will reach the goal.”

Rueggeberg: Certainly he who is not conscientious and persevering therefore and practices sloppy,
will have no success. Those just don’t have the talent for magic, but also in other of the life’s domains
such as top athletics of music, for which one has also to practice conscientiously and with
perseverance in order to be successful.

--

Stejnar page 225: Interview with Mr. Ogris: Ogris: If this works indeed, then this contains some dangers.
Bardon strongly cautions to use the seal of a being for a long time because this could cause a
dependency.
Stejnar: This is true. Even the passive communication with the genies carries dangers. He who through
conscious attention towards a subtle intelligence makes contact with this being can be attracted and
influenced as much as if the contact was made by magical evocation. If we do not really know if indeed
the being in question or an elemental evokes the desired effect I warn not to carry the seal of a being
with you constantly.

Rueggeberg: As far as I know, Mr. Stejnar has for many years sold to his clients talismans with the
seals of the 360 heads of the zone girldling the earth. I doubt that he informed his talisman clients
regarding this. Such a behavior is in total contrast to the instructions by Franz Bardon in “The practice
of magical Evocation”. It is therefore no surprise that the work of Franz Bardon has been put in a bad
light, so that the reads don’t get it that they have been sent on stray paths.

Stejnar page 230 “The purpose of the mirror of the soul is not to philosophize about the four elements
and on a list his qualities are arranged correctly, but that one feels and understands which energies are
behind them. Only he who rightly feels the primal qualities which give a characteristic substance and
dynamic cab work with them and change them.

Rueggeberg: This judgment is wrong and it is the total opposite of what Franz Bardon teaches in
“Initiation into Hermetics”.

Stejnar page 231: “The time for orders and master is however over. What was communicated to a
neophyte in earlier times gradually in stages and after years of training , Franz Bardon and I had to
disclose openly to the unprepared reader….”The Hermeticist is not more ripe or advanced the a religious
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believer, but he has scrutinized his believes and rejected a lot.. He does not believe in the god of the
Christians or of the Jews or of the Muslims, also not in Brahma or Manitou.”

Rueggeberg: The time for orders and masters is not over! The books of Mr. Stejnar, according to my
knowledge, lead the students astray, instead forward on the path like the teachings of Franz Bardon
do. What a Hermeticist believes can be found for example in teaching books of Agrippa of Nettesheim,
Paracelsus, Robert Fludd and Franz Bardon.

--

Stejnar page 237 “Astrology is therefore the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and end, the foundation
and the crown of magic. … I am sure Bardon casted more horoscopes than he did evocations.”

Rueggeberg: This statement is the crown of the stultification of his readers, because the crown of
magic in the Kabbalah and not Astrology, this every student of Hermetics knows that from his first
year of life. We have not one piece of proof that Franz Bardon even casted one horoscope.

Stejnar page 245: “Only, if no more wishes beset one, the spirit has gained freedom and independence.”

Rueggeberg: This opinion is philosophical nonsense, which spook around in some philosophical
quarters. Isn’t it self understood that the wish for wishlessness is a wish like any other. Only the
“Mystic Death” ends all wishes as Franz Bardon mentions.

Stejnar page 250 “As soon as this mental mechanism, which is revealed in the “Books of Magic and
Mysticism in the 3. Millennium “has been read, then one can free oneself from the sphere of influence
of all gods and demons….The simple “thought magic” of Prentice Mulford is just as effective as the
complicated techniques which are taught in the other 21 leafs of wisdom and who use more complex
mental mechanisms of the creation.”

Rueggeberg: This contradicts not only all the laws of philosophy and reason and but also in each case
all the laws of Hermetics, that a human can remove itself from the sphere of influence of his creator.

To put so called “thought magic” of Prentice Mulford above Franz Bardon is either ignorance or
misleading which every reader can decide by himself. It is self understood that the work of Prentice
Mulford is not an occult work of initiation and unsuitable in comparison to Bardon and other good
works of initiation.

Stejnar page 264: “With the help of astrology one can influence ones fate. This kind of “magic” has so far
never been written about. (The book by Stejnar) “Magie und Astrologie” offers simpler options to make
use of the cosmic powers than the elaborate ceremonial- of evocation magic. The new astrology
deciphers as well as the genetic code of spirit and soul as well as the circuit board of the genies of fate. If
one knows the tides of power then one can see through the web of fate and overcome the powers of
fate.

Rueggeberg: With the help of astrology Mr. Stejnar wants to overcome the powers of fate of Saturn!
Anybody can develop according to his own discretion, but no student of Hermetics will believe such
nonsense.
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Stejnar page 269: Advertising: Exercises for Freemasons: - “Stejnar describes the secret exercises of the
Freemasons by which anybody who follows these instructions will gain magical powers and he explains
the symbols with which energies can rule of the powers of fate.”

Rueggeberg: In the citation to page 231 Mr. Stejnar claims that the times for lodges and orders are
over and that there are no secret lodge archives.

Stejnar page 285 From “Anubis” No. 10, December 1988 – Only by the results of Stejnar’s researches,
“The Practice of Magical Evocation” became a standard work of magic. Let us hope that the publishers
Bauer and Rueggeberg finally will correct the errors, which obviously can only be explained by the total
incompetence of the manager of the publisher.

Rueggeberg: No, Ruggeberg publisher is not that stupid, to undertake some changes in the work of
Franz Bardon without comprehensive reason. My rejection of his request was delivered to him on the
11. of August 2000.

Stejnar page 286: “Through the “Practice of the mystical Evocation” which has been revealed for the
first time, it is now possible to make contact with the genies. This is possible by the indirect pact which
the reader makes with the genies as soon he joins the covenant of the wanderers. This worldwide
brotherhood between the humans and the genies of the zone girdling the earth again appears on this
world by means of the guardian “Schutzengelbuch” (Guardian Angel Book). There is no oath,
membership fee or any other obligations. With the “Schutzengelbuch” he proofs himself as a “Pilgrim”
and is admitted as soon as he professes himself as such. After, at a full-moon night he signs his pledge it
is sufficient to do daily meditations at a house altar.

Rueggeberg: So, by the “Practice of the mystical Evocation” the practitioner of the “Gnostic
Hermetics” is seduced to a make a pact with a spiritual being. With which beings he does of course
not know, because he has not worked himself up to the eight step of “Initiation into Hermetics”.

The students will not be told that it is not possible without a fully developed ability of clairvoyance to
make active contact with beings or genies. He therefore has no knowledge if he did make a pact with
a positive or negative being. This is dangerous imbecility! Of the dangers of magical pacts of all kinds
Franz Bardon warned enough in “The Praxis of magical Evocation” in the chapter “Advantages and
Disadvantages of evocation magic on page 114 (German edition).

As quoted Mr. Stejnar claims that the time of loges and orders is over, but then he himself founded a
covenant for which admission as “Pilgrim it is necessary to sign a pledge.

For the path of Hermetics it is not necessary that the seeker signs a pledge. But admittedly he only
becomes a true student of Hermetics if he makes comparative studies and follows the path
perseveringly and conscientiously which is laid out among others in the works of initiates like Rudolf
Steiner, Karl Brandler-Pracht, Wilhelm Quintschre, Georg Lomer, Sivananda and Franz Bardon.

Conclusion:

I think that my explanatory notes are adequate to form an opinion about this book.
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Magic is science and today any person that is interested has the freedom to occupy oneself with it or
keep away from it. To access this high knowledge the same prerequisits apply as the disciplines of the
natural sciences.

Several times (in Stejnars book) letters without a date were quoted and it seems dubious when it is not
mentioned who and when and to whom a letter was written. Therefore it is impossible to check if the
quoted letters are at all based on truth.

When an ignorant person makes a wrong conclusion about Hermetics then one can say it is an error. But
when an educated High Degree Freemason decrees a wrong opinion about Hermetics one has to state
that it is a conscious misleading.

The book has been compiled by the method of “confusion of ideas” and transvaluation of all values” in
order to reduce the value of the work of Franz Bardon and lead unknowing reads into a dead-end street.
This is what the work of Stejnar is, based untruths, contradictions and misjudgments which are exposed
here.