Lucifer's Court: A Heretic's Journey in Search of the Light Bringers

By Otto Rahn

Rahn's personal diary from his travels as occult investigator for the Third Reich - First English translation of the author's journeys in search of a Nordic equivalent to Mt. Sinai - Explains why Lucifer the Light Bringer, god of the heretics, is a positive figure Otto Rahn's lifelong search for the Grail brought him to the attention of the SS leader Himmler, who shared his esoteric interests. Induced by Himmler to become the chief investigator of the occult for the Nazis, Rahn traveled throughout Europe--from Spain to Iceland--in the mid 1930s pursuing leads to the Grail and other mysteries. Lucifer's Court is the travel diary he kept while searching for "the ghosts of the pagans and heretics who were his] ancestors." It was during this time that Rahn grasped the positive role Lucifer plays in these forbidden religions as the bearer of true illumination, similar to Apollo and other sun gods in pagan worship. This journey was also one of self-discovery for Rahn. He found such a faithful echo of his own innermost beliefs in the lives of the heretics of the past that he eventually called himself a Cathar and nurtured ambitions of restoring that faith, which had been cruelly destroyed in the fires of the Inquisition. His journeys on assignment for the Reich--including researching an alleged entrance to Hollow Earth in Iceland and searching for the true mission of Lucifer in the caves of southern France that served as refuge for the Cathars during the Inquisition--also led to his disenchantment with his employers and his mysterious death in the mountains after his break with the Nazis.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1594771979
• ISBN13: 9781594771972
• Release Date: February 2008
• Publisher: Inner Traditions International
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.96 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.1" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

The Story of Otto Rahn's Highly Personal Quest for the Light Bringers

Being the second book by Rahn I've read this week and well into his recent biography, I must say this is probably the best Rahn-related book out there. Written by Otto Rahn in the 30's, a member of the Allgemeine SS on a quest from his boss Himmler to find genuine European religion, as opposed to the Semitic ones. The book is divided into three parts, each about 70 pages long. The first part deals mainly, like Rahn's first book, about the Cathar "heretics" of Southern-France and elsewhere, that got crushed by a Papal crusade in the 1200's. The second part is mainly about South-European "heretics", and the final part is mainly about North-European "heretics". There isn't really any "system" to the book; it is a travel diary by the hand of Rahn, as he ventures all over Western-, Southern- and Northern Europe. The book is filled with his highly personal thoughts, pieces of history, religion, ideology, hopes and dreams of both the past and the future. The book is translated by C. Jones, who also did Rahn's other book back in 2006. The translation is excellently done, and apart from some rather pathetic Semitically Correct footnotes here and there, Jones has done quite the job with these two books. Despite this, Rahn's feelings are quite lucid, he states on page 89; "Despite everything, it is my hope that one day Europe will be free from all Jewish mythology". Rahn's "main theory" was that the Cathar sect that blatantly opposed Rome (see his first book for more details), and that they were in some way in possession of the Grail, and had hid it somewhere in Southern France when the forces of the Pope came crusading for their destruction. Therefore, Rahn travels the way he does, both in search for the Grail in various caverns and castles, but also through both the head of himself and that of others, in search for purely European mythology. The title of the book shouldn't put you off at all, he doesn't mean "Lucifer" as in the Jewish "Satan", but rather the angel that fell from grace because he dared ask questions and dig for truth. Hence, the book is meant for those Europeans that are or were on a Faustian quest for salvation through the blood and the mythology that we carry within us. These, are Lucifer's court. As Rahn states quite explicitly, as opposed to the two biggest of the Abrahamic religions on page 138; "Our heaven speaks only to the pure ones, [...] to Aryans, the noble and lordly!" I can do nothing but recommend this book in the highest possible sense, it is poetic, beautiful, deep and yet easy to read. This book might serve as a very welcome antidote to the modern madness, one could only wish that books like these were in the European curriculums with passages as on page 236 that are more valid than ever before; "As blood loses its spiritual significance, it dries, and likewise the ancestors go silent". Read it! 5 stars.

New age collections will find it intriguing and packed with adventure.

The author's lifelong search for the Grail brought him to the attention of SS leader Himmler, who shared his interests: thus Rahn became the chief investigator of the occult for the Nazis, pursuing leads to the Grail. LUCIFER'S COURT is the travel diary he kept during these pursuits, and brings to life his beliefs, encounters, and world-wide journeys. New age collections will find it intriguing and packed with adventure. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch

Only the Church Lady could not like this book

Julius Evola effectively refuted Otto Rahn's basic idea -- that the `secret of the Cathars' was that they possessed the Holy Grail -- in a short chapter in a small book [originally only an appendix to his REVOLT AGAINST THE MODERN WORLD], and mentioning Rahn by name only once. In THE MYSTERY OF THE GRAIL [published in English by Inner Traditions, who also, oddly enough, publish the two Rahn books] Evola says that "the spirit of Catharism ... had indeed very little to do with the spirit of the Grail's Templarism." The dualism, pessimism and other-worldliness of the Cathars "show how distant this tradition was from ...a heroic spirituality." Catharism contributed to the Ghibelline opposition to the Church, but "only indirectly, owing to contingent historical reasons, and not because of a true affinity with the soul of the imperial myth." Rather, its "opposition to the Church was based on its perception of Catholicism as a sort of continuation of the Mosaic religion... in other words, the Catholic Church was too "Roman" to be the Cathar Church of Love." So why then the continuing interest in Rahn? Well, there is the "Nazi Mysticism" angle, and Rahn is an attractive figure, since he can be portrayed as a "good guy" who, despite the Gestapo uniform, saw the error of his ways and tried to get out, ultimately by committing suicide -- a truly Catharist gesture, as Evola might have pointed out. In particular, there's the "real Indiana Jones" angle, which is even more appropriate for this book than his CRUSADE AGAINST THE GRAIL, since, as John J. Reilly has pointed out in his review [Southern Literary Messenger, 1.1] LUCIFER'S COURT bears a certain resemblance to the "Grail Diary" which plays a key role in the plot of "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade." More important, I think, is that whatever the truth of Rahn's Grail theories, LUCIFER'S COURT is a well-written account of Rahn's travels, at the behest of Heinrich Himmler, no less, in search of the sources of the Grail traditions. And along the way, Rahn produces inspired passages that, however he may have confused Catharism with Templarism, give voice to an authentic heroic spirituality [what Evola called `virile' and which Rahn places under the sign of Lucifer]. Here are some: "His [Hercules] was the will of the strong who rose against fate and thus fate itself. He made himself into a hero who won out over the night of calm and inertia. He sought God and found God in himself. Therefore, he himself became a god." [p.58] "Lucifer's court is composed of those northern bloodlines that chose `a mount ... in the sides of the north' and not Mount Sinai... as the goal of their search... Lucifer's courtiers did not whine and whimper to heaven, but instead beseeched admittance heartily, because they did their very best as humans and were therefore worthy of deification." [p.79] "'Do strong people require an intermediary?' `Yes, but not as an intermediary who redeems. Instead, those who are

Not so evil as misinformed for our era - a goldmine.

"Lucifer's Court" comes with a warning that its insidious evil will require a very circumspect approach, but in our contemporary era (post - "Indiana Jones") it is not quite that bad, except perhaps for fundamentalist literalists of all stripes. This is a terrific reference source for those who wondered why German and French mythology seemingly doesn't exist, yet Norse, Roman, and Greek gods and sagas remain familiar. The writer is not particularly anti-semitic, and his observations provide many clues as to the basis for Germany's hideous descent into darkness that followed his suspicious death. It is, however, distinctly anti-Catholic and anti-Papist, with many valid reasons given for this point of view. The Journal of Psycho History often cites child abuse as being one of the major causes of German reactions against "filth", and French apathy at the rise of the Third Reich, but upon attaining a thorough understanding of "Lucifer's Court", it will become apparent that the Nazis were intent on removing Yaweh's influence over Europe, since it was (in Rahm's view)the Jewish and Christian repudiation of Lucifer (Lugh/Apollo, etc.) that led to the rise of the Church of Rome, and the resultant horrors of Pope Innocent III against the future Germanic peoples. It is important to remain aware that one does not need to agree in any way with Otto Rahm's opinions or research conclusions to gain a much broader understanding of European history, much of which had been greatly repressed until recently. It is also of note that the interpreter's footnotes are accurate and very valuable in pointing out flaws, details, and further research topics for those so inclined, particularly concerning the Cathars and the Albigensian Crusade. An excellent book, but not for the faint of heart, nor the bigot.

On The Road With Otto Rahn

I found " Lucifer's Court " far more interesting reading then " Crusade Against the Grail ", Rahn's other book. Not that " Crusade Against The Grail " is not a good book on the subject - it is. However It is more of a straight history of the Cathars and the Grail. More objective. What I like about " Lucifer's Court " is it's more subjective style as a journal of Rahn's travels and insights. One feels like they are on the road with Rahn as he moves from Southern France to Italy, the Tyrol, through the Brenner Pass and beyond. It is a journey full of quaint side glances and romantic musings of people, places and things he encounters and learns of in his own journey's quest. It takes him along the ancient amber route to the north of Germany, Britian and on across the North Sea to Iceland. After reading this book I felt like I knew a great deal more about Rahn as the romantic human being he was. His personality and spirit comes through in this book. For years I have read extracts and quotes from his books and was sorry that they had never been accesible to English readers. Now they are and one can see how they were seminal books on the subjects he covers. All thanks to inner Traditions for making these books available in English for the first time.