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Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in the 1920s and 1930s: a Case

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Comité de rédaction
Raïa Zaïmova, rédacteur en chef, Institut d’Études balkaniques & Centre de Thracologie
(Институт за балканистика с Център по тракология – ИБЦТ, София)
Fikret Adanır, Université Sabancı (Sabancı Üniversitesi, Istanbul), Ivo Banac, Université
Yale (Yale University, Connecticut), Stanoje Bojanin, Institut d’Études byzantines, Belgrade
(Византолошки институт САНУ, Београд), Ulf Brunnbauer, Université de Ratisbonne
(Universität Regensburg), Nathalie Clayer, CNRS; EHESS, Paris, Nadia Danova, Académie
bulgare des Sciences (БАН, София), Raymond Detrez, Université de Gand (Universitеit
Gent), Rossitsa Gradeva, Institut d’Études balkaniques & Centre de Thracologie (ИБЦТ,
София), Francesco Guida, Université de Rome III (Università degli Studi di Roma Tre),
Wolfgang Höpken, Université de Leipzig (Universität Leipzig), Ivan Ilchev, Université
de Sofia (СУ „Св. Климент Охридски“), Pascalis Kitromilidis, Université d’Athènes
(Εθνικόν και Καποδιστριακόν Πανεπιστήμιον Αθηνών), Alexandre Kostov, Institut d’Études
balkaniques & Centre de Thracologie (ИБЦТ, София), Ana Lalaj, Centre d’Études
albanaises (Qendra e Studimeve Albanologjike, Tirana), Dobrinka Parusheva, Université
de Plovdiv; Institut d’Études balkaniques & Centre de Thracologie (ПУ „Паисий
Хилендарски“; ИБЦТ, София), Roumiana Preshlenova, Institut d’Études balkaniques &
Centre de Thracologie (ИБЦТ, София), Ljubodrag P. Ristic, Institut d’Études balkaniques,
Belgrade (Балканолошки институт САНУ, Београд), Liliana Simeonova, Institut
d’Études balkaniques & Centre de Thracologie (ИБЦТ, София), Elena Siupiur, Institut
d’Études Sud-Est Européennes, Bucarest (Institutul de Studii Sud-Est Europene, Academia
Română, Bucureşti), Maria Todorova, Université de l’Illinois (University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign), Galina Valtchinova, Université de Toulouse II
Malamir Spassov, secrétaire scientifique du Comité de rédaction, Institut d’Études
balkaniques & Centre de Thracologie (ИБЦТ, София)
Мargarita Serafimova, coordinatrice de la revue, Institut d’Études balkaniques & Centre
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 ACADÉMIE BULGARE DES SCIENCES
INSTITUT D’ÉTUDES BALKANIQUES & CENTRE DE THRACOLOGIE

ÉTUDES BALKANIQUES
LV / 1

Mirabilia: Miraculous and Magical

Guest Editor
Vanya Lozanova-Stantcheva

Sofia ∙ 2019
 ISSN 0324 – 1645

ÉTUDES BALKANIQUES
Sofia ∙ 2019 ∙ LV ◆ 1
ACADÉMIE BULGARE DES SCIENCES
INSTITUT D’ÉTUDES BALKANIQUES & CENTRE DE THRACOLOGIE

Sommaire

Vanya LOZANOVA-STANTCHEVA, Mirabilia: Miraculous аnd Magical.

On the Ancient Roots of the Concept Apparatus................................................5
Valeria FOL, Angry Deities and Heroes: Examples from Thrace...........................24
Nevena PANOVA, On the Miraculous Turns in Aristophanes’ Clouds...............32
Vyara KALFINA, Mythological Monsters in Aristophanes’ Birds........................51
Dimiter ILIEV, Magic and Witchcraft in the Greek Bible: Lexical Aspects.......64
Albena GEORGIEVA, Folklore Projections of the Holy Spirit Feast..................92
Eugeny RADUSHEV, Orlin SABEV, Did the Ottomans See UFOs?
(A 1838 Ottoman Document about an Unusual Celestial Phenomenon)....106
Joanna SPASSOVA-DIKOVA, Miracles and Magic in the Performing Arts......118
Georgeta NAZARSKA, Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals
in the 1920s and 1930s : A Case Study................................................................ 139

Sources primaires
Alexandru CIOCÎLTAN, Miracles in Bulgaria in an Unpublished Account
from 1632.................................................................................................................. 167

Comptes rendus
Dobrinka PARUSHEVA, An Overview of the Development of the Transport
and Communications in the Balkans during the “Long Nineteenth Century”
(Alexandre Kostov, Transport i komunikatsii na Balkanite (1800 – 1914)
[Александър Костов, Транспорт и комуникации на Балканите
(1800 – 1914)] Sofia, UI “St. Kliment Ohridski”, 2018)..................................... 183
 ÉTUDES BALKANIQUES, LV, 2019, 1

ESOTERIC PRACTICES OF BULGARIAN INTELLECTUALS

IN THE 1920s AND 1930s: A CASE STUDY1

Georgeta Nazarska
State University of Library Studies and IT, Sofia

Abstract: The article presents some facts of newly-found archival documents,

testifying to the existence of esoteric networks and practices involving the Bulgarian
intellectuals in the 1920s – 1930s. The structure, aims and practices of an esoteric
network created by Stoyan Zaimov (1853 – 1932) – a famous Bulgarian
revolutionary and cultural figure, are reviewed in the context of the rise of secret
and closed societies in Bulgaria after World War I.
Keywords: Esotericism, Theosophy, Rosicrucianism, Freemasonry, Bulgaria

Introduction
The purpose of this article is to study the esoteric practices of Bulgarian
intellectuals in the 1920s – 1930s, and more specifically an esoteric society
created in the early 20th century by Stoyan Zaimov (1853 – 1932) – a famous
revolutionary, writer and museum director. The history, structure, function­
ing, ideology and practices of the social network are placed in the context of
the secret closed societies in Bulgaria after the First World War. Correspon­
dence and manuscripts from personal collections in the State Central Ar­
chives and the Bulgarian Historical Archive at the National Library in Sofia,
published documents, memoirs and photographs are sources for the research.
They are analysed as a case study, as well as by applying historical, semantic and
contextual analysis.

1 I express my deep gratitude to Prof. Dr. Sc. Valeria Fol for the idea and encouragement
to prepare this article.
139
140 Georgeta Nazarska

1. Secret Closed Societies in Bulgaria –

Tradition and Change after the First World War
The secret society of Stoyan Zaimov was created in the context of the
global cultural transformation in the world and Bulgaria at the turn of the
20th century.
In the period of the 1880s – 1890s, following the Berlin Congress, the
new international order came into force. Preparing themselves for a new war,
the great powers invested in developing technologies and armament, and
were focused on their colonies. The transfer of people and ideas between
the metropolises and the Near and Far East was facilitated. This situation
stimulated a strong conceptual polarization – spread of pacifist ideas and
movements, as well as an increase in the activity of extreme groups using
violence to solve their political and social goals. Political arrangements of the
future Triple Alliance and Triple Entente were accompanied by economic sta­
bility, allowing considerable growth of population’s mobility in the early 20th
century. For the first time in centuries traveling around the world for trade,
education, pilgrimage, tourism, recreation, etc. had been accompanied by pro­
longed stay, by settlement for work or living abroad, or by mixed marriages.
Communication with unknown cultures (through direct contact, original or
translated fiction, periodicals, correspondence, etc.) contributed to a change
in people’s thinking, attitudes and tastes, to their inclusion in local cultural
structures, and to cooperation with foreign friends, colleagues, patrons, etc.2
At the end of the 19th century, modern scientific and technical discoveries
became most popular. In religious thinking this reflected in the search for ex­
planations of the creation and functioning of the world and life, in increasing
interest in transcendental issues or in reliance on reason as a superpower3.
The social and economic modernization of traditional societies in the
world, and particularly in Europe, was accompanied by secularization proces­
ses. The prevalence of secularism led to the decline of traditional religiosity.
It sometimes manifested itself as an interest in transcendentalism, occultism,
and mysticism, but sometimes as religious fundamentalism, seeking purity
of faith and ritual authenticity. In this period some secular Catholic orders

2 N. Davies, Europe: A History. London, Pimlico, 1997, pp. 759 – 897.

3 М. Хауъдр, У. Р. Луис, (съст.) Оксфордска история на 20. век. София, Труд, 2000,
с. 13 – 98.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 141

appeared, but in the Orthodoxy, the popularity of the Old Believers, of the
charismatic spiritual mentors in monasteries (spiritual fathers, starchestvo), of
John of Kronstadt, and of mystical Christianity4 increased.
The international (cultural, scientific, and political) networks contributed
transformation of elite. Trans-border associations, organizations, leagues, etc.
created their own branches around the world and attracted many followers.
Many freemasonic lodges, semi-freemasonic structures (as Rotary clubs, B‘nai
B‘rith and co-freemasonic lodges), Rosicrucian formations, theosophical
societies, Roerich’s fellows associations, spiritualist circles developed their
activities5.
The coming of the new 20th century provoked, as in other centuries,
fear of the Doomsday among Christians or expectation of the New Age of
Aquarius. This gave rise to the separation of a number of religious formations,
especially within the Protestant churches. The religious boom led to the emer­
gence of New Religious Movements, characterized by a syncretic ideology and
amorphous nature. The constantly transforming religious and spiritual forma­
tions mixed old ideas and existing cult practices (Christian, Buddhist, Hindu,
Gnostic, and Esoteric), created special rites, and emitted new (charismatic)
religious leaders. Their relations with traditional churches were characterized
by fierce competition on the religious market to attract believers, with mutual
criticism and controversy, with atomization and new configurations. Thus,
powerful ideological movements, such as theosophy, spiritualism (mesmer­
ism), and so on, appeared6.
In the newly-liberated Bulgarian state these processes met favorable
conditions: a liberal Constitution (1879), a branched multi-party system,
a well-structured civil society, state support for the training of Bulgarians
in foreign secondary schools and universities, and a rise of printing and
periodicals.
4 Р. Ремонд, Религия и общество в Европа. Есе за секуларизацията на европейските
общества през ХІХ и ХХ в. (1789 – 1998). София, ЛИК, 2006, с. 206 – 222.
5 Дж. Марсдън, Религията и американската култура. София, „Планета 3“, 2002,

с. 131 – 136, 146 – 148, 161 – 166, 194 – 208; Цв. Георгиева, Unio Mystica и българският
символизъм. София, „За буквите – О писменехь“, 2008, с. 19 – 104.
6 C. L. Albanese, America: Religions & Religion. Belmont, Thomson, 2007, pp.

153 – 198, 228 – 251; G. Melton, Another Look at New Religions. In: W. C. Roof (Еd.)
Americans and Religions in the 21st Century. Philadelphia: American Academy of Politi­
cal and Social Science, 1998, pp. 275 – 112; А. Баркър. Новите религиозни движения.
Практическо въведение. София, Литавра, 1997, с. 21 – 29.
142 Georgeta Nazarska

After the Liberation (1878), the level of religiosity had sharply declined
and the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (BOC) lost its traditional leading place
as a major public institution: many clergymen, attracted by secular vacancies,
had been leaving it, and the higher priests were becoming more and more po­
liticized. The propaganda of secular or atheistic slogans by social democrats,
anarchists, and communists attracted many young people7.
At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, a lot of spiri­
tist and occult circles became widespread in Bulgaria. The former Protestant
alumnus Peter Dunov formed the Divine Chain and in 1900 established the
Universal White Brotherhood (1900) – a domestic example of the New Reli­
gious Movements. In the same decades the Bulgarian Theosophical Society
was founded (1903) and mystical Christianity enjoyed popularity through
the Good Samaritan societies. Intellectuals were heavily attracted to apoca­
lyptic Christianity, to the Sophiological doctrine of Vladimir Solovyov, to
symbolism in art, to Wagner’s aesthetics and to Nietzsche’s proto-messianism.
At that time, many freemasonic lodges were created in Bulgaria with local and
foreign members8.
After the First World War, the world entered into an anomie – a specific
cultural state of individuals, groups and society, caused by rapid social changes
and a crisis (vacuum) of values, norms and behavioral patterns. For about a de­
cade, in the 1920s, old stereotypes and frames were no longer valid, and new
ones had not yet formed or did not work efficiently. Regardless of the approach
to the anomie (of Durkheim sociology, of Fromm and Erikson psychoanaly­
sis, or of anthropology), all social and human sciences were convinced that in
anomie human behavior becomes deviant, people split between compromise
and clash with social norms, between stereotypes and innovation. An ambiva­

7Ст. Цанков, Българската православна църква от Освобождението до настояще

време. София, „Държавна печатница“, 1939.
8 В. Георгиев, Масонството в България. София, Наука и изкуство, 1986, с. 16 – 37,

119 – 131,153 – 178; B. Rosenthal, The Occult in Modern Russian and Soviet Culture. Wash­
ington, Cornell University Press, 1993, pp. 7 – 8; В. Атанасова, Измерения на религиозно­
то пространство на източния мистицизъм в България до средата на ХХ в., В: Бакалов,
Г. (Ред.), Религия и църква в България. Социални и културни измерения в православието
и неговата специфика в българските земи. София, „Гутенберг“, 1999, с. 372 – 380; Цв.
Георгиева, Unio Mystica и българският символизъм, с. 105 – 166; И. Жейнов, П. Ванев,
Е. Вичев, 90 г. от създаването на Ложа „Дунавска звезда“, 1921 – 2011. Русе, Дунав прес,
2011.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 143

lent attitude towards the authorities (including God) and oscillation between
secularization or their total denial could be observed9.
In such a situation of uncertainty and aggression, the so-called New Age
movement, preaching the future unification of mankind and religions by a
great spiritual master (a cosmic mind, a savior) and by selected disciples, was
proclaimed. The means for this were pacifism, healthy and environmentally
friendly way of life, and development of spiritual gifts. Such ground produced
a boom of astrologers, fortune tellers, telepaths, hypnotists, mediums, clair­
voyants, sorcerers, but also became a field for dissemination of theosophy,
anthroposophy, spiritualism, scientology, Buddhism, Agni yoga, etc.
Similar trendencies affected Bulgarian society as well. In the 1920s, the
non-Orthodox confessions broadened their activities. Besides the Congrega­
tional, Methodist and Lutheran Church, the Adventist, Baptist and Pentecostal
Churches emerged in the Protestant community. The end of the war caused a
mass interest in mysticism in all its dimensions. The ideas of personal improve­
ment, change of public milieu and a new morality were discussed by the New
Age, by Helena Blavatsky’s theosophy, by Rudolf Steiner’s anthroposophy and
by occult secret societies. In the Bulgarian society a boom of occult practices
occurred, new esoteric societies emerged, and the number of freemasonic
lodges increased (in 1917 – 1931 they were already 11). The Universal White
Brotherhood, combining the theosophical, Christian and anthroposophical
ideas with Eastern ritual and spiritual practices, was gaining popularity
and turned itself into a mass organisation with 15 – 40,000 followers. They
were prepared within the Common and Youth Occult Classes (1922 – 1944).
Theosophical societies and lodges published a lot of periodicals, delivered
lectures and talks, and attracted members of various social backgrounds10.
The Baha’i society (1928) and the Leo Tolstoy ideas were followed by fewer,
but passio­nate fans11. Mystical Good Samaritan societies and the followers of
9 M. Orru, Anomie: History and Meanings. London, “Allen Unwin”, 1987; K. Hong
Lawrence, Anomia and Religiosity: Some Evidence for Reconceptualization, Review of
Religious Research. vol. 22, №3, 1981, pp. 233 – 244; J. Vladimirov et al., Bulgaria in the
Circles of Anomie. Neuchatel, 1998, pp. 6 – 10.
10 Д. В. Дюлгеров, Теософско общество, Годишник на Софийския университет,

Богословски факултет, Ч. І, т. 6, 1928 – 1929, с. 1 – 56; Ч. ІІ, т. 7, 1929 – 1930, с. 35 – 124.

11 В. Георгиев, Масонството в България; В. Атанасова, Измерения на религиозно­

то пространство на източния мистицизъм в България до средата на ХХ в.; Н. Дими­

трова, Дебати около българския гностицизъм – ХХ в. Велико Търново, Фабер, 2008; Цв.
Георгиева, Unio Mystica и българският символизъм, с. 105 – 166.
144 Georgeta Nazarska

the Roerichs were increasing numerically12. The formation of non-traditional

political and semi-political formations, such as the Naroden Sgovor (National
Union), the Military League, etc., which relied on their secret existence, close
life and elitist selection, should also be mentioned.

2. Stoyan Zaimov’s Esoteric Network

Chronology. The earliest evidence of the existence of the esoteric society
created by Stoyan Zaimov is from 1912 – 1913. It can be found in correspon­
dence between him, his son Vladimir and General Kliment Boyadzhiev. The
network was disintegrated after Zaimov’s death in September 193213.
Membership. Zaimov recruited the network members among his rela­
tives, personal friends, associates, colleagues, neighbours and their children.
Participants were men and women, adults and children, Bulgarians and Rus­
sian émigrés, supporters of right- and left-wing parties, followers of various
ideological movements. They were all intellectuals: teachers, writers, artists,
scientists, military officers, clerks, and others.
Structure. The documentation shows that the society had a branched ter­
ritorial structure with a centre in the town of Pleven and periphery, dynami­
cally changing according to the mobility of its members and covering Sofia,
Varna, Bourgas, Khaskovo, Kazanlak, Mezdra, village of Byala Cherkva and
even France.
More important was the personal structure, shaped according to Zaimov’s
ideas. Its centre was in the Upper Land, namely Mount Olympus, where Zeus
lived, the inner and outer circles of the Upper Land. The periphery was the
Lower Land, a dwelling place of inhabitants of the Lower Land (dolnozemtsi).
Zeus was at the centre of the network, and in the next, hierarchically orga­
nised circles were the Olympian gods (Hera, Artemis, Athena Pallas, Demeter,
Aphrodite, Heba, Orpheus, Hygieia, Cupid, Diana, Prometheus, Hercules, the
Martyr of Love), muses (Cleo, Melpomene), fairies, vestal virgins and priest­
esses, and ordinary people (Poppaea, Petronius, Othello, Desdemona, Beauty
from the Touzlouk Region, Rose of Kazanlak, Wild Goat, etc.).
12Г. Вълчинова, Балкански ясновидки и пророчици на ХХ в. София, Български бест­
селър, 2006; М. Дачев, Диалози с Майстора. Размисли върху градежите на Васил Стои-
лов. София, Звездата на София, 2006.
13 The latest date is May 1934, when Nikolay Rakitin, the new director of the Pleven

Museum and the hypothetical leader of the society, committed suicide.

 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 145

They were predominantly named after the ancient Greek Pantheon, the
sacred personalities and real figures from Rome, but also derived from existing
pseudonyms or participants’ sessions14 (Appendix). There was no logic asso­
ciated with kinship, age, or gender in the naming15. Perhaps similar to other
esoteric societies, the place in the hierarchy was proportional to the progress
of the esoteric student in the doctrine (the Way).
Reasons for establishing a society. At the centre of the esoteric network
stood the personality of Stoyan Zaimov, called by the members Dad, King of
Olympus, Lord of the Cosmos/the Bright Palace/the White Palace, Thunderer,
Generous Spiritual Father, God over Gods and Goddesses.
What motivated Zaimov to create that society? There is evidence that
he was devoted to freemasonry at the beginning of the 1870s when he was
chairperson of the community centre in Khaskovo. During his imprisonment
in Diyarbakir and his participation in the Bulgarian Internal Revolutionary
Organisation against the Ottoman Empire, the Giurgiu Revolutionary Com­
mittee (1875) and the Bulgarian Central Charity Committee (1876), he
became close to his own co-workers16. After the Bulgarian Liberation (1878),
as a teacher in Shoumen, Varna, Kyustendil and Sofia, Zaimov had been work­
ing in the St. Michael the Archangel Community Centre in Shoumen and the
Bratstvo (Brotherhood) Community Centre in Kyustendil (1888 – 1895) –
14 The pseudonyms are a hallmark of the secret societies. This practice was transferred
in Bulgaria, too. The participants in the revolutionary organisation until 1878 had created
their own secret names. Zaimov was known as the Sounder, Benkovsky, the Target, Stoyan of
the Diyarbakır, and Stoyan of Saint Jean d’Acre. In Moscow he was called Bulgarian Orpheus
because of his singing talent (Ив. Начева, Дневникът на Стоян Заимов, Известия на
държавните архиви, т. 41, 1981, с. 108). The name Eagle of Diyarbakır may be related to
later Zeus as the sacred animal of the Olympian Thunderer. Names of Ancient Greek and
Roman mythology were given to freemasonic lodges in Russia (Jupiter, Hermes, Prometheus,
Aurora, and Hercules), Germany (Apollo, Minerva), Greece (Arеte), Europe (Demeter,
Narcissus, and Apollo) (Н. А. Берберова, Люди и ложи. Русские масоны ХХ столетия.
Харьков, Калейдоскоп, Москва, Прогресс-Традиция, 1997, с. 100).
15 I would like to thank Dr. Kalin Stoev for the consultation on the principles of nam­

ing the esoteric network.

16 Хр. Гандев, Васил Левски. Политически идеи и революционна дейност, В:

Хр. Гандев, Проблеми на Българското възраждане. София, Наука и изкуство, 1976,

с. 571 – 622; В. Сариев, Диарбекир и българите. София, „Христо Ботев“, 1996, с. 242.
There he participated with many freemasons like Nikola Obretenov, Athanas Ouzunov,
Nikola Slavkov, Stefan Stambolov, Kiril Botev and others. In a photo, Zaimov and Stam­
bolov show the freemasonic gesture of the hidden hand.
146 Georgeta Nazarska

famous freemasonic centres, where he delivered lectures about illusions and

hallucinations. In the same period he participated in theosophical and spiritist
circles17.
My own research on some unknown periods of Zaimov’s life shows that
he was probably follower of many other secret societies. As a prisoner in the
St. Jean d’Acre fortress (1876 – 1878), it is possible that he was involved with
Rosicrucianism18. In 1880 – 1882, using his contacts with Rosicrucians and
freemasons, Zaimov enrolled in the Teachers’ Seminary of Novikov in Mos­
cow. There he met his future wife, an heir to the Lithuanian family Korsak-
Razoumovsky, who ruled the Russian Rosicrucianism19. Probably in Russia
the young student also became acquainted with Advaita Vedanta, a variety of
Hinduism20.
17 Кл. Заимова, Младият Заимов. Дневници, писма, спомени. София, „Народна
младеж“, 1990, с. 21; Черно море, N 40, 11.04.1892. The Russian theosophy, which was very
popular in that period, undoubtedly also influenced his views (М. Карлсон, „Нет религии
выше истины“. История теософического движения в России 1875 – 1922, 2012: http://
www.theosophy.ru/karlson.htm – 8.09.2018).
18 St. Jean d’Acre was a fortress of the Maltese Order, with St. John as its patron. The

rose is its symbol, but its ideology is related to the pursuit of knowledge, good, truth, justice,
cure of mankind, and wisdom. The means of doing so are seclusion, enlightenment (nir­
vana) and achievement of immortality. They recognised karma and reincarnation (Я. ван
Райкенборг, Тайните на розенкройцерското братство. Кн. 1: Зовът на розенкройцер-
ското братство. София, „Розенкреюс прес“, 2007, с. 142 – 149; М. Хайндл, Космогони-
ята на розенкройцерите, ч. 1 – 3. Варна, „Алфиола“, 1992 – 1993; Е. Парнов, Тронът на
Луцифер. София, Партиздат, 1989).
19 Ив. Начева, Дневникът на Ст. Заимов, Известия на държавните архиви, т. 41,

1981, с. 109; О. А. Платонов, Исторический словарь российских масонов 18 – 20 веков.

Москва, Арина, 1996, с. 47, 79; Н. А. Берберова, Люди и ложи. Русские масоны ХХ сто-
летия. Харьков, Калейдоскоп, Москва, Прогресс-Традиция, 1997, с. 166. This period of
Zaimov’s life has not been studied sufficiently. Most biographers wrote that he enrolled in a
Pedagogical Institute (Кл. Заимова, Младият Заимов. Дневници, писма, спомени. София,
„Народна младеж“, 1990), which is not in the same city. Тодоров (Ил. Тодоров, Стоян
Заимов и „Миналото“, В: Ст. Заимов, Миналото. Очерки и спомени из деятелността
на българските тайни революционни комитети от 1869 – 1877 г. София, БЗНС, 1986,
с. 616) maintains that Zaimov studied in Moscow for 4 years, but according to his own
diary (Ив. Начева, Дневникът на Ст. Заимов, Известия на държавните архиви, т. 41,
1981, с. 95), it was only for 2 years. The private Teachers’ Seminary affiliated to the Moscow
University was established (1779) to prepare primary teachers. All lecturers and students
were freemasons. N. I. Novikov (1774 – 1818) was a Rosicrucian and was married to A.E.
Rimskaya-Korsakova, a relative of Zaimov’s future wife.
20 The Mahabharata and Ramayana were taught in the Seminary. The first Russian

translation of Bhagavagavita was made by N. I. Novikov, who had obtained a private print­
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 147

Zaimov was not only a creator, but he was also an ideologist of his esoteric
society. In the 1920s he wrote many legends, drawing inspiration from the
Bulgarian past and from Thracian, Greek and Roman mythology21. In the
writings22 an elitist philosophy, separating the people of Upper and Lower
Land, and a three-level understanding of the world and of human nature were
stated. Unlike the Christian dualistic view, Zaimov’s world model was pyrami­
dal. According to him, the Upper Land (of Prometheus) was a reflection of
the divine soul. That is why he associated it with air, respect, truth, kindness
and beauty, with gorgeous gardens full of flowers and fruits, in which people and
gods lived. The Middle Land (of Athena Pallas) was a projection of human soul
and emanation of social justice. The Lower Land (of Mars) was a true embodi­
ment of the animal soul. It was a cool place, site of the deaf and vain, kingdom
of the living donkeys, the ordinary people, a small Sodom full of passions, nerves
and petulance, with thefts, frauds and wars. In Zaimov’s understanding, man
was a three-sided pyramid consisting of an animal, human, and divine soul.
Evolution (reincarnation) went from the Lower to the Middle and the Upper
Land, where there was a new understanding of morality. The people of the
Upper Land were presented as elected heavenly, bright minds, artists of high

ing house and kiosks in Moscow, and issued in the Hermetic Library – series for esoteric
knowledge (В. С. Брачев, Масоны в России: от Петра I до наших дней. Санкт-Петербург,
„Стомма“, 2000; А. Л. Никитин, Мистики, розенкрейцеры и тамплиеры в Советской
России. Исследования и материалы. Москва, Аграф, 2000). There were some findings that
Zaimov was interested in Eastern philosophy: Tsar Ferdinand of Bulgaria called him Dalai
Lama (Кл. Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, В: Наше минало, т. 26, 2003, с. 10), and
the poet Ivan Vazov chose him as prototype of the Japanese sage Kumi Sapa Dumbbell in the
Japanese silhouettes short story (Д. Димитров, Стоян Заимов. Книга за него и неговото
време. София, Отечествен фронт, 1971, с. 233).
21 The following manuscripts are preserved in Zaimov’s private archival collection:

Sweet Memoirs of Near Past and Some Thoughts of the Happy Future; The Kingdom of the
Legends, on the Paths of History. The Temple of Psycho-Biological Truths; The Paths of History;
In the Wild Kingdom of Legends; She and They, the Strong Ones and the Evils in the World.
A Legend; Orpheus and Musala. A Rhodope Legend; Orpheus and Moses. A Legend; Mars
and the Capitol Hill; Hermes and the Fox Cave; Prometheus and the Caucasian Rock; Hermes
and the Milos Cave; A Small Universe. A legend; The Distant Past. A legend; The Black Rock
(ЦДА, 1325k, a.e. 869; а.е. 874). Zaimov sent his books as presents to his friends (ЦДА,
ф. 1837k, оп. 1, a.e. 492, л. 1).
22 Ст. Заимов, Далечното минало, близкото и далечно бъдеще. Легенда. Плевен, Из­

грев, 1923; Заимов, Ст. Миналото в легенди. Плевен, Изгрев, 1924.

148 Georgeta Nazarska

moral culture23. Zaimov’s ideas included faith in reincarnation and immorta­

lity, death was accepted calmly and without needless sorrow24.
Rituals. The nature of the esoteric society does not require a complete re­
construction of its rituality. The meagre evidence in the member correspond­
ence testifies to the existence of initiation rites25.
The most important of these was the dedication, called ascension of the
Olympus and creation of a new Universe. It was done with Zeus’ benevolence,
and then the soul of the new member could rest and subside after suffering and
labour in the Lower Land, and may live a new, bright life. There is evidence that
initiation was considered as beginning of the chronology for each member of
the society: the first year of consecration was equivalent to 16 rotations of the
Earth and of 16 sunrises26.
A second important transition ritual was naming. Pseudonyms were given
personally by Zeus and were accompanied by a special decree, as follows:

23 Ibid.
24 These ideas were similar to Hinduism (Advaita Vedanta), which Zaimov probably
acquired from books which he had read in Moscow (Bhagavad Gita, translated by N. I. No­
vikov) and in his homeland (Bhagavad Gita, 1918, translated by Ivan Grozev). Related was
the content of the collection Superhumans (1919), which included theosophical articles by
Annie Besant, Charles Webster Leadbeater, Curuppumullage Jinarajadasa and Isabel Coop­
er-Oakley. It was translated by Sophrony Nickoff and Ivan Grosev, Bulgarian pioneers in
theosophy (Ел. Азманова-Рударска, Иван Грозев в българската литература. Социални,
политически, исторически и религиозно-мистични контексти, полемики и диалози. Со­
фия, Рива, 2018). In later years philosopher Nayden Sheytanov, a freemason, mentioned
in some works the term Upper and Lower Land (Н. Шейтанов, Българската вяра, В: Н.
Шейтанов. Балканско-българският титанизъм. Съст. Е. Лазарова, София, „Захарий
Стоянов“, 2006, с. 212). In the 1910s – 1920s Rosicrucian books translated by spiritist Ve­
liko Grablashev were also widespread (Философията на живота според Розенкройцерско-
то учение или Тайните на живота в Христовото учение. София, „Св. София“, 1912; Fr.
Hartmann, With the Adepts: An Adventure among the Rosicrucians. New York, Theosophical
Publishing, 1919).
25 Freemasonic lodges usually have 3-stage initiations, accompanied by complex ritu­

ality and symbolism (A. Маккей, Древните мистерии и франкмасонството, В: Ч. У.

Хекеторн, М. П. Хол, A. Маккей. Древните мистерии и франкмасонството. София,
Мириам Паблишинг, 2009, с. 203 – 241; О. Ф. Соловьев, Масонство. Словарь – спра-
вочник. Москва, Аграф, 2001, с. 101 – 113). In the Rosicrucian lodges 3-stage initiation
with 3 – 5 sectors, named after Mercury and Jupiter, was practice too (Я. ван Райкенборг,
Тайните на розенкройцерското братство, с. 173, 177).
26 ЦДА, ф. 1324k, оп. 1, a.e. 135, л. 3 – 4; а.е. 397, л. 2 гр.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 149

Olympian royal decree, May 3rd 1921: Lyuben, son of the Osogovo Mountain,
declaring as an immortal divine singer of the Olympus, named Orpheus. To
record his name in golden letters in the book of our Bright Palace [...] Athena,
Heba, Hygieia and the muse Clio have to offer him appropriate gifts27.

Part of society’s rituals was the conferring of prestige to the leader Zeus.
This is clear from the correspondence in which everyone addresses him re­
spectfully, using refined formulae.
An element of rituality can also be sought in the clothing of members
(Fig. 1). The photographs of Zaimov, especially those after the First World
War, confirmed that the white colour and light tones dominated his clothes
and accessories, even in the winter season28. Gruyo L. Gruev from Kazanlak
was described by his fellow citizens always wearing a white suit.
The sources give information that some members of the society were veg­
etarians. Zaimov’s close friends made it possible to supply him with products
from vegetarian shops and restaurants, because he had been keeping a diet
since 191229.
Communication in the esoteric network. The communication of society
members was intense, but it was not well documented. Annual meetings held
in Zaimov’s office in the museum building of the Skobelev Park are reported.
In some of the letters Christmas ( January 7th) was mentioned to be a day of
gatherings filled with reading, talking, singing romances, laughter and joy. Ac­
cording to most participants, after these meetings, they felt illuminated30.
An important element of communication was the vow of silence given
by the initiates. It was an explicit condition allegedly brought by Zeus as
head. That is why the correspondence was kept secret and masked in double
envelopes. Before his death, Zaimov obliged his family to keep silent about
everything heard, seen and experienced31. Probably that is the reason why by
now Zaimov’s manuscripts, provided by his heirs, are currently scattered in

27 Ibid. a.e. 397, л. 3 – 3 гр.

28 Кл. Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, В: Наше минало, т. 26, 2003, 2 – 11: 9;
ЦДА, ф. 1837k, оп.1, a.e. 267, л. 1.
29 Ив. Начева, Писма на Стоян и Клавдия Заимови, Известия на държавните ар-

хиви, т. 46, 1983, 121 – 130; ЦДА, ф. 1324k.

30 ЦДА, ф. 1324k, оп. 1, a.e. 214, л. 24 – 25.
31 Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, с. 10.
150 Georgeta Nazarska

many state and private collections, basic documentation is missing, and only
selected fragments are published32.
Social Exchange. A knowledge exchange can be seen in Zaimov’s esoteric
network: Zeus was a source of secret knowledge, the members – its users and
adepts. Their correspondence with the leader also shows an uninterrupted
exchange of services and goods. Participants usually asked Zeus to lend them
money or to buy clothes, to assist them in finding a job or clients, to mediate
in their personal conflicts. In their turn, they performed every desire of their
patron, looking for food and clothing for him, or improving his mood. An im­
portant principle in the communication network was introducing uninitiated
people, giving them some concepts and showing them some sacred places, but
not explaining their exact meanings33.
Sacred places. The Skobelev Park was created by the Tsar Osvoboditel (Tsar
Liberator) Committee in 1900 as a military memorial of those who had per­
ished in the siege of Pleven and in honour of the Liberation of Bulgaria in
187834. After a three-year construction on the terrain of a former Ottoman
family tomb under a project by the French botanist and park designer Jules
Lochot, it was officially opened in 190735. Over the years, Zaimov as Chair of
the Committee, managed to turn it into a true Slavic sanctuary36. It was sub­
ject of mass visits by Bulgarians and foreigners. Even in Russia a Committee of
Pilgrimage to Bulgaria was formed37. Zaimov wrote two books: Svetite mesta
na priznatelna Balgaria (Holy Places of Grateful Bulgaria) and Pesni i belezhki
za svetite mesta na priznatelna Balgaria (Songs and Notes on the Holy Places
of Grateful Bulgaria).
The Park, however, was mentioned under a different name in the letters
of Zaimov: Samodivi (Mermaids’) Park. He wrote about it: My Olympus – the
Skobelev Park-monument with its White Palace – is no longer in the world [...],

32 Начева, Писма на Стоян и Клавдия Заимови.

33 Калина Малина, За поета на Слънцето, Литературен глас, N 234, 13.05.1934.
34 И. Петков, Стоян Заимов и Комитетът „Цар Освободител“, Исторически пре-

глед, 1973, с. 48.

35 Ibid. p. 52.
36 Ст. Сен-Жан Д’Акърски, Светите места на признателна България. Т. 1 – 2. Со­

фия, Плевен, Пордим, „Коста Т. Мотавчиев“, 1912, с. 85.

37 Л. Джупов, Взаимоотношенията между украинския Комитет „Паломничество

в Болгарию“ и българския Комитет „Цар Освободител“, Военноисторически сборник,

N 3, 1987, с. 187 – 197.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 151

nicer than the Old-Hellenic Museum, where the dead Gods – heroes had been
living38. This suggests that the park may be seen as a sacred place of the esoteric
society39. The analysis of the signs in the Skobelev Park revealed a dichotomy.
At first glance, there is clear evidence of the gratitude to those who died for
the Liberation, but, on the other hand, they directed the dedicated visitor to
a certain symbolism.
A good example of this is the entrance to the Park. The parade door,
adorned with initials of General M. D. Skobelev40 and made of old arms, was
decorated with freemasonic compasses and a solar disk with rays, and widely
used by the Illuminati. The mosaic of river stones contained the name of the
park and the abbreviation of the Tsar Osvoboditel Committee, but the main
symbols were two stylised rising suns or blossoming roses – symbols of free­
masonry and Rosicrucianism.
Perhaps not accidentally, in the 100 acres park, Jules Lochot originally
planted 43,000 roses and 50,000 peaches. On the one hand, the rose is a
Christian symbol associated with martyr’s death, the Garden of Eden or the
St. George’s victory. It is particularly suited to the laymen visiting the park,
motivated by their patriotism. On the other hand, the rose from the Antiq­
uity embodies the idea of ​​heavenly joy and erotic love. The Rosicrucians use it
precisely in this context to mark their main ideas (love, perfection, glory, bliss,
afterlife, and resurrection).
It is possible that trees (acacia, lime, and boxwood) and fruits (cherries,
plums, apples, pears, and grapes)41, along with their practical use (to shield
visitors), had been assigned symbolic significance. These plants have various
interpretations in mythology and various religions. They were used in the
rituals of the secret societies too. In the park, the alleys bear both prosaic and
meaningful names: of Balm, of Walnut, Alpine, of Plato, of Skobelev’s roses, of
Joy, of Death, of Faith, and of Immortality42.

38 Начева, Писма на Стоян и Клавдия Заимови, с. 121.

39 Sacred places for secret societies are usually temples (for freemasons), gardens and
park complexes (for Rosicrucians), tombs, etc.
40 In freemasonic symbolism, the letter „M“ marks for 12th degree and the letter „D“ –

for the God (О.Ф. Соловьев, Масонство. Словарь – справочник. Москва, Аграф, с. 113
sq.).
41 Сен-Жан Д’Акърски, Светите места на признателна България, с. 305.
42 Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, с. 6.
152 Georgeta Nazarska

An important site in the Park was the Samodiva Lake (Mermaid Lake),
which features a statue of a young lady by the French sculptor Antonin Mercié.
It also appears as a typical park space and as a ritual place for the esoteric soci­
ety. In his book, Zaimov writes that the mermaid lamented the Russian soldiers
with a sad song, but that it became Skobelev’s mermaid, which made miracles
during the Rusalka (Green) Week, getting alive in the nights43. In folklore the
samodivi are portrayed as girls dressed in white, sidelined by heroes. Similar
to them is their Slavic analogue – rusalki, whose name is supposed to come
from the Ancient Roman Rose Festival (Rosalia) celebrated on June 30th. It
often coincides with the Rusalka (Green) Week, associated with the day of
the Rosicrucian patron, St. John the Baptist ( June 24)44. Perhaps the esoteric
society had its ritual gatherings along the lake at that time of the year. It was a
tradition for visitors to take pictures there.
The house of the museum curator was another sacred place for the soci­
ety. At first glance, it is a museum area without attractiveness for laymen, but
for the members it was a place for initiations and gatherings, called the Light
Palace, the Golden Towers of Love and Happiness, the White Palace in which
peace and beauty prevail. There Zaimov meditated for hours on the balcony
Tranquility/ Mercy, drinking tea and reading45. Old and contemporary pho­
tographs show the unusual shape of this architectural element on the balcony:
a stylised sunrise on the wooden grille, covered with curtains.
Near the museum house was situated another sacred place in the Park: the
Nirvana (Joy) Gazebo, decorated with a white stone pavement, white wooden
benches, roses, and vineyards. Next to it, through a walnut tree alley, the Zeus’s
Vineyard could be reached, where grapes for ritual food were grown in the
annual pansy in memory of the victims of the Pleven siege on August 30th46.
Probably only society members were invited to the Gazebo. The photographs
show Zaimov – always dressed up in bright clothes – alone or in the company

43 Сен-Жан Д’Акърски, Светите места на признателна България, с. 76.

44 The feast day of Pentecost is usually celebrated seven weeks after the Easter Sunday,
in May-June. According to the researchers Dimiter Marinov, Mikhail Arnaoudov, Angel
Yankov, and Albena Georgieva, the so-called in folklore Rusalka (Green) Week is time of
transition, driven by transcendent powers and especially by rusalki (mermaids). All the peo­
ple are obliged to sacrifice gifts around a water pool (spring, lake, or holy spring) and to play
around it a maiden ritual dance ‘horo.’
45 Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, с. 10; ЦДА, ф. 1324k, оп. 1, a.e. 214, л. 39.
46 Ст. Сен-Жан Д’Акърски, Светите места на признателна България, с. 81, 304.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 153

of relatives, military, intellectuals and associates. Next to the Gazebo he built

his grave47. Regardless of the magnificent owl in the Pleven Mausoleum-
Chapel and the mass funeral procession, Zaimov was buried in the chosen
place. His tombstone, overgrown by the Rosicrucian cross, became a subject
of worship until it was demolished in 1950.
The soldiers’ monuments in the Skobelev Park were also part of the sacred
places of the society. Among them were at least two non-traditional types:
pyramids made of empty artillery shells and resembling eastern temples (pa­
godas), and stone arched doors connecting two or more graves and symbolis­
ing the most common entrance (or exit) to the divine world.
Most intriguing, however, was the Skobelev Tomb-Ossuary, situated in
a central location in the park. On the one hand, it commemorated the vic­
tims of the Russo-Turkish War (1877 – 1878), but it can be assumed that it
was a central ritual place for the society. Its final appearance was the result
of a number of transformations, probably designed by Zaimov himself, not
by an architect. Initially, the Ossuary resembled a pyramid of soil. Later, it
lost its peak and became a truncated pyramid – a freemasonic symbol. The
third reconstruction created a ‘crown’ of unblemished stones, symbolising the
way of the freemasons to perfection. Gradually, two arches-doors were built
on the top, an isosceles cross was placed, vegetation was planted, a plinth of
unbleached stones was built at the foot, and the space in front of the ossu­
ary was paved with a colourful mosaic in the form of a rose. An arched door
was added to the wrought iron door, decorated with freemasonic symbols
(compasses, turned to the ground and sky, and a solar disk with rays) and a
Rosicrucian isosceles cross (Fig. 2 – 4). Gradually the Ossuary turned from a
military memorial into a sacral place. In the first place, it appeared almost as a
complete analogue to the Christian Rosenkreuz tomb. This is visible in their
various elements: arched entrance, stone plinth, stone crown, and cross on
the top, shape of a sacred mountain48 (Fig. 5). Secondly, the Ossuary strongly
resembled the freemasonic temples built in the Russian courtyards at the time
of Empress Catherine the Great – of unblemished stones, corridors, round
interior and iron doors49.
47Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, с. 10.
48Я. ван Райкенборг, Тайните на розенкройцерското братство, с. 205.
49 Such shapes are seen in the ruins of freemasonic temples in the estates of the Petrovs­

ky-Razoumovsky family in the village of Teplovka and the village of Gorenjki, the Moscow
Region.
154 Georgeta Nazarska

The St. George Pleven Mausoleum-Chapel (1907) was possibly another

sacred place of the esoteric society. The building gave a hint of a tomb of a saint
or ruler. Unlike ordinary cemetery chapels, it was not located in a graveyard
or in the Skobelev Park, but at the city square. Its architect Pentcho Koytcheff
chose the shape of a cruciform church, representing an ideal isosceles cross
with a dome engraved to resemble a rose strongly. It is crowned with a Ro­
sicrucian cross, with stylised roses on the façade, and the central entrance is
typical of the Rosicrucires arcade portal. It has served since 1932, just after
Zaimov’s burial service was carried out there50.

Conclusions
The esoteric society of Stoyan Zaimov was the result of a mystical ‘boom’
among the Bulgarian intellectuals at the beginning of the 20th century and
after the First World War. It was a continuation of esoteric activity in Bulgaria
and Russia since the end of the 19th century but in the 1920s – 1930s it be­
came part of new international esoteric networks and closed societies, from
Southeast Europe to France.
The main mechanisms for the creation of the esoteric network were kin­
ship and relationships on the ground of mutual interests, as well as Zaimov’s
personality. It can be characterised by simple connections, inhomogeneity
and instability over time, especially after the death of its leader. The social
exchange within it was productive for its members in view of their vertical
social mobility and their participation in other secret societies. For example,
Zaimov’s family members continued their activities within a number of secret
societies in the next decades.
Zaimov’s esoteric society had a number of eclectic characteristics and is
not quite typical among secret societies in Bulgaria during the same period. Its
membership consisted of people of various gender and age, and it reminded
of the Co-freemasonry and Theosophical lodges. Similar to the freemasonic
and theosophical ideology is the ethics of the society that included ideas for
salvation of mankind through enlightenment51. Some influence of Russian
spiritism and freemasonry is also revealed in the secret name on the ancient
pattern and in the architectural plan of the sacred places.
50 According to the freemasonic tradition, the funeral of the lodge members takes place
in a freemasonic temple (О.Ф. Соловьев, Масонство. Словарь – справочник, с. 291).
51 Дюлгеров, Теософско общество.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 155

Zaimov’s esoteric society borrows widely Rosicrucian symbolism and art

sculpture, as well as its ethical system, endorsing the ideas of seclusion (medi­
tation) in seeking wisdom, achieving enlightenment (nirvana), and paving the
way to the redemption of karma, reincarnation and immortality.
Its organisation, symbol system, meditation-related spiritual practices,
and ethics based on material freedom, seeking happiness, bliss and immortal­
ity through truth, kindness, and beauty, however, are related to Hinduism and
specifically to its branch Advaita Vedanta.
An interesting detail in this peculiar ideology of the society is the search
for the native, which is strongly typical of the Bulgarian intellectual climate
during the interwar period. It is expressed in the drawing of motives and char­
acters from folk legends and traditions and even from Thracian mythology.
Many of Zaimov’s followers were freemasons and they continued their
activities in the national and international context and after the disintegration
of the occult group. It is possible that some of them joined the Pleven branch
of the Universal White Brotherhood, which continued to be very active until
its defeat by the communist state in the late 1950s52.
Zaimov’s esoteric society was not an isolated case among the numerous
religious and mystical formations created in Bulgaria by intellectuals and pet­
ty bourgeoisie, mainly in the Bulgarian urban space. In the 1920s – 1940s a
number of theosophical groups, Rotary clubs, small sects with early Christian
orientation (i.e. Nazarites, Agni yoga, etc.) were formed, transformed and in­
tertwined53. Some of them were banned in 1934 – 1941 by the authoritarian
right regime and the introduction of the anti-Semitic Act for Protection of
the Nation54. Others lost their registration after 1951 – 1952 and the early
1960s as a result of the normative transformations and persecution of the
Communist state. There were yet others, however, that continued their illegal
existence until the fall of the totalitarian regime in 1989, despite the political
control55.
52 ЦДА, ф. 1319к, оп. 1, а.а. 515; 1224; 1307; 1566; 1573; оп. 2, а.е. 282; 430; 664;
Ж. Лефтеров, Религиозната политика на БКП и Бялото братство. София, НБУ, 2018.
53 Цв. Кадийски, Ротари в България, 1933 – 1941. София, Симолини, 2011; Ив.

Богданов, Синовете на вдовицата: масонство и масони. София, УИ „Св. Климент Ох­

ридски“, 1994.
54 Георгиев, Масонството в България; Р. Ангелова, Петдесятната църква в Бълга-

рия, 1920 – 1949. София, Фабер, 2016.

55 Държавна сигурност и вероизповеданията, ч. 3. Протестантска църква и религи-

озни секти, 1944 – 1991. София, Комдос, 2017, с. 266, 268, 271, 273, 511 – 515.
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APPENDIX:
The Esoteric Society’s Members56
1) Zaimov, Stoyan (Zeus57, Father, King of Olympus, Ruler of the Light
/ White Palace / Cosmos, Thunderer, Generous Spiritual Father, God over the
Gods and Goddesses) (1853 – 1932).
2) Boyadzhiev, Kliment (Angov/Sonegov?) (1861 – 1932) – Lieutenant-
General, military commander, Minister of War.
3) Vakavchieva, Magdalina (Magda) Ivanova (Honorary Secretary of
Olympus, Muse) (b. Lyaskovetz) – daughter of Ivan Vakavchiev (he was Zai­
mov’s classmate, participant in the April Uprising in 1876, teacher, director
of the Tarnovo Male High School, school inspector); member since 1921;
previously lived in France and Varna; member of the Majka Women’s Charity
Society – Varna; teacher in the Girls’ High School in Kyustendil and Varna.
56 The list is compiled on the grounds of archive and published sources (БИА, ф. 540,
оп.1, а.е. 41: л.1; ЦДА, ф. 1324k, оп. 1, а.е. 135, 158, 163, 172, 173, 181, 214, 287, 349, 350,
397, 408, 454, 550, 605, 606, 713, 869, 874, 973; Заимова, Нещо повече от спомени, с. 6 – 7,
9; Начева, Писма на Стоян и Клавдия Заимови, с. 121 – 130; Димитров, Стоян Заимов.
Книга за него и неговото време, с. 217). Probable participants in the Society were also: Niko­
la Obretenov –Zaimov’s close friend, revolutionary, freemason; Mikhalaki Georgiev – writer,
diplomat, member of a spiritist circle, freemason, member of the Universal White Brotherhood
of Peter Dunov; Emanouil Popdimitrov – poet, lecturer, freemason; Ivan Stoychev – Colonel,
director of the Military Museum, freemason; Alexander G. Schultz – Russian emigre, Deputy
Director of the Pleven Museum; Elena Georgieva-Delousche – artist, living in Paris; Kon­
stantin D. Balmont – Russian poet, living in France, theosophist; Reuben Henry Markham –
American theologian, teacher, missionary, journalist, and freemason.
57 The name of Zeus appears in Zaimov’s early manuscripts, where Russian emperor

Alexander III was called Zeus on the great Russian land, and Prince Alexander of Bulgaria –
Apollo of Belvedere.
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 161

4) Vitanova (unknown pseudonym) – editor of Zaimov’s works; until

1921 she had been working in Pleven and Tarnovo.
5) Gruev, Gruyo L. (Ever Young) (1840, Kazanlak –?) – attorney-at-law
in Stara Zagora and Kazanlak; founder of the Sokol Hunting and Shooting
Society (1897).
6) Grueva, Radoslava (Rose of Kazanlak, Heroine of the Les illusions
perdues) (b. Kazanlak) – daughter of Gruyo L. Gruev, member since 1929.
7) Grancharova (unknown pseudonym).
8) Dimova, Siyka (Martyr of Love) (b. Kazanlak).
9) Dyankov, Prokopi (unknown pseudonym) (1851, Svishtov – 1927) –
participant in Hristo Botev’s detachment, sentenced by Ottoman court to
prison in the Asia Minor, living earlier in Sofia, Vratsa and Pleven.
10) Zhelev, Tanyo (unknown pseudonym) – clerk in the Pleven Museum.
11) Zaimov, Vladimir (Good Hercules) (1888, Kyustendil – 1942) – Zai­
mov’s son, Zaimov, General, graduated the Military School.
12) Zaimov, Stoyan Vladimirov (Cupid) – Zaimov’s grandson.
13) Zaimova, Claudia Vladimirova (the New Fairy) – Zaimov’s grand­
daughter.
14) Zaimova-Boycheva, Ekaterina (Katya) (Cleo the Goddess)
(1882 – 1972) – Zaimov’s daughter, graduated French literature from the
Nancy University, teacher at the Girls’ High Schools in Sofia and Kyustendil,
clerk at the Pleven Museum (1924 – 1933).
15) Zinka (unknown pseudonym).
16) Zlatarov, Assen (unknown pseudonym) (1885, Khaskovo – 1936) –
scientist in chemistry, writer, freemason, his father and uncles were freemasons
and Zaimov’s close associates.58
17) Yosifova (unknown pseudonym) – teacher in the Girls’ High School
in Pleven, edited the works of Zaimov in the 1920s.
18) Yotzeva, Paraskeva (Keva) (unknown pseudonym) (1883–?) – daugh­
ter of a close family, raised by the Zaimov family.

58 His mother Theophana also had interests in mysticism (Й. Чолаков, Асен Златаров.
По случай 100 г. от рождението му, Векове, 1985, N 1, с. 70 – 75). In a telegram (1922)
Zaimov wrote: The inspired muse for your future generous fruitful activity will never leave you
(ЦДА, ф. 865k, оп. 1, а.е. 14, л. 22). He gave him his picture and a book (1927) with the
inscription of the Lord of Upper Land (Т. Златарова. Цената на свободата. София, Оте­
чествен фронт, 1988, с. 238). Zlatarov published Zaimov’s obituary (Литературен глас,
1.10.1932).
162 Georgeta Nazarska

19) Kmetov, Nikola (Mars) (1864, Gorna Oryahovitsa – 1929) – Colo­

nel, cavalryman, graduated from the Military School, served in the 4th Cavalry
Regiment in Yambol.
20) Korsak-Zaimova, Claudia (Hera) (1859 – 1950) – Zaimov’s wife, a
Lithuanian.
21) Krusnikov, Atanas (unknown pseudonym) – Zaimov’s assistant at the
Pleven Museum.
22) Laleva-Zaimova, Anna (Athena Pallas, Spiritual Daughter) (1895,
Karlovo – 1983) – Zaimov’s daughter-in-law since 1914, teacher.
23) Milanova, G.H. (the Divine Poppaea) (b. Bourgas) – member during
1916 – 1921.
24) Pelasheva, Dobra (Priestess) (1890, Khaskovo–?) – graduated from
the American School of Girls in Samokov and sociology in Boston, editor of
the First Steps Magazine, participated in 1923 – 1927.
25) Petrov (unknown pseudonym).
26) Rakitin, Nikola (Prometheus) (1885 – 1934) – poet, teacher at the
Pleven Wine Vocational School, follower of Leo Tolstoy’s ideas, director of the
Pleven Museum (1933 – 1934), made three suicide attempts (1933 – 1934)59.
27) Uzunova-Rakitin, Katya (Muse) – wife of Nikola Rakitin, living ear­
lier in Pleven.
28) Chakarov, Lyuben (Orpheus) (b. Vratsa) – living earlier in the town of
Mezdra, husband of Mara Chakarova, poet.
29) Chakarova, Mara (Hebe, Erotina, Muse) (b. Stara Zagora – 1927) –
teacher in the town of Byala Cherkva, member during 1921 – 1927, wife of
Lyuben Chakarov.
30) Shishmanov, Vladimir (Petronius) (1860, Malko Tarnovo – 1941) –
teacher, journalist, writer, translator from French, humourist, nickname
Petrone, director of the National Library (1902 – 1903).
31) Yakimova (unknown pseudonym) – unmarried woman.

59 An author of the Liberated Prometheus (1923) and Rusalki’s Meadow. Short Stories
(1938). Probably his suicide in a railway tunnel in the Iskar Gorge has a ritual sense of sacri­
fice for immortality because his body had been found broken up in pieces, similar to that of
various mythological heroes (Horus, Purusha, Osiris, Dionysus, and Orpheus). He himself
blamed Zaimov’s relatives for his death, called them inhabitants of the Lower Land (kingdom
of lies, treachery and deceit). On his grave a sculpture was erected: an allusion to the three-
faced goddess of the freemasons (virgin, mother and old woman).
 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 163

32) Unkown man 1 (Faon) – elderly man, member since 1920.

33) Unkown man 2 (Narcissus) – probably Zaimov’s grandson Vladimir
Chimshirov (1912 – 1962).
34) Unkown man 3 (Othello) (born in Stara Zagora) – husband of Des­
demona.
35) Unkown man 4 (Little Amor) – probably Zaimov’s grandson Viktor
Boytchev (1913-?).
36) Unkown woman 1 (Artemis).
37) Unkown woman 2 (unknown pseudonym) – sister of Mara Cha­
karova, studied abroad.
38) Unkown woman 3 (Hygieia).
39) Unkown woman 4 (Sophia = Wisdom).
40) Unkown woman 5 (Muse from the village of Vetren) – female member
of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA).
41) Unkown woman 6 (Psychea) – probably Zaimov’s granddaughter
Valentina Chimshirova – Savova (1910-?).
42) Unkown woman 7 (Divine Io) – from Varna.
43) Unkown woman 8 (Sapho) – from Varna.
44) Unkown woman 9 (The Grayling with Falcon Eyes).
45) Unknown woman 10 (Aphrodite).
46) Unkown woman 11 (Demeter) – Zaimov’s girlfriend.
47) Unkown woman 12 (Diana, Diana the Goddess) – a Russian artist,
living earlier in Pleven in 1920.
48) Unkown woman 13 (Wild Goat) – teacher, member in 1919 – 1920,
living earlier in the village of Gorno Kalougerovo.
49) Unkown woman 14 (Melpomene).
50) Unkown woman 15 (Desdemona) (b. Stara Zagora) – Othello’s wife.
51) Unkown woman 16 (Tamara, Maid, Vestal Virgin, the Beauty from
the Touzlouk Region) – living in the town of Pleven.
164 Georgeta Nazarska

Figure 1. Stoyan Zaimov and gendarmerie officers from Pleven

in the Nirvana Gazebo (1928)

Figure 2. Skobelev’s Tomb-Ossuary (1907)

 Esoteric Practices of Bulgarian Intellectuals in The 1920s and 1930s... 165

Figure 3. Skobelev’s Tomb-Ossuary (beginning of 20th century)

Figure 4. Skobelev’s Tomb-Ossuary (1930s)

166 Georgeta Nazarska

Figure 5. Christian Rosenkreuz’s Tomb

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