ALBERT DE SARAK
Photo of him and his astral double
From Mary Evans Picture Library
General Inspector of the Supreme Council of the Order of the Initiates of Thibet
From Hilary Evans' Dictionary of Unusual People:
Alberto Santini-Sgaluppi (aka comte, Boudh Sa dou, A Sarak, Sartini de Rosarno, &c) (mid C19) Italian : charlatan who deceived many but was shown up when his little son claimed his apports as his own beloved goldfish, yet many continued to believe him genuine ® Tocquet Occultisme dévoilé 278
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here's what Tocquet says about Sarak (translated from French
|
Of Italian origin, Doctor Count Albert de Sarak, who, in fact, was neither a doctor, nor a count, nor named Sarak, was one of the more dishevelling figures of pseudopsychism. His true name was Alberto Santini-Sgaluppi, but he was successively known as: the Commander Sartini Knight of Albert, the Knight Sartini de Rosarno, the Count de Das, Magnetiseur Sartini, the Count Alberto de Sarak and, finally, Doctor Count Albert de Sarak.
He was entitled modestly: General Inspector of the Supreme Esoteric Council of the Orient, the Maitre venere (loosely translates maybe to : the Superior One Who Has Come), the Great Chemist, the Prime Minister of the Initiates of India (where he had never set foot), the Messenger of the Light, etc, etc. This daring, cynical, and conceited charlatan made innumerable victims, not only in the milieu of psychic mediums, but also in the world of Sciences, the Letters, and Arts. He sold titles of nobility wholly authentic that he created himself and he even went so far as to decorate one to Victor Hugo, with great splendor, using an imaginary decoration. His "psychic" experiments that he presented in the style of Yogi or Grand Initiates were really more suitably characterized as base conjuring tricks. In addition to the turns (tricks) which we have discussed in the beginning part of this book, he performed the traditional experiment of the calling card torn into 3 or 4 pieces - where afterwards one finds: one in the pocket of a witness, another in a book, one third underneath the foot of an assistant, etc... He named this turn: "The Phenomenon of Dematerialization and Rematerialisation". The experiment known as "The Instantaneously Hatching Fish", of which we have also discussed, made a big impression, but unfortunately for the Yogi, it was, as we will see, unmasked in delightful circumstances. Sarak, as we have said, showed the witnesses some caviar grains, and threw them into a large glass half-filled with water. He then sat down in an armchair and placed the container between his legs. He spread out a white drapery, that an assistant was requested to support, above his chest and to his knees. Sarak moaned and pronounced odd words. After ten minutes went by, he raised the drapery and revealed that the caviar grains had given birth to half a dozen small red fish. But, one evening, a lady noted to the fakir that, during this experiment, he was hiding under his dress a rubber apparatus containing water with fish, both arriving there via tube in a small aquarium held by the Yogi. In reaction to his deceit, she exclaimed: "You take us for pears! (i.e. fools)" To erase the bad impression made with this justifiable remark by a witness, Sarak had the idea then to put the fish, which he supposedly had just made hatch, into glasses, and to offer them to the ladies present. Ay! What a terrible idea ! it was, indeed, for on that day, little Sarak (his son) assisted in the sensational experience. Seeing the way his father distributed the fish, he was provoked to produce the cries of a sea eagle, felt the urge to cry, and was compelled to run towards his mother, where circumstances forced him to exclaim: "Mommy, they take all my fish from me.". The continuation is guessed. (Translator's note: Actually a better translation is "You can guess what happened next.", but I just like it better.) Moreover, some time after this incident, the celebrated illusionist Caroly revealed all the tricks of the Yogi in 'Illusionniste', a journal about conjuration for amateurs and professionals. One could think that after this double demasking, Sarak lost all his creditability. Nope. Many people continued to regard the charlatan as a true and powerful fakir and supported him financially. Encouraged, the false magus raised the bar and pushed the same impudence. Several publications had revealed his tricks, but he was shrewd enough not to take it to court. Then, he left Paris to go to dupe some new victims in other countries. |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connected to Hermetic Brotherhood of Luxor (light)?
Savâk?
Son was a special incarnation -- had his Order celebrate son's birthday as start of "The New Era"
Sarak is author of Psicología moderna y ciencias ocultas, (1899). Lima.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Translated from Fraternitas Rosicruciana Antiqua
"In those times they had left worried to the public attention the phenomena about Count de Sarak and formed three parties. First they attributed the demonstrations of Sarak to pure fraud; the seconds saw in the gentleman Count a great initiate and the last ones, although they accepted that some phenomena of Mr. Sarak were safe from all fraud, in others had behaved like a prestidigitador of circus."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I have checked out book about Sarak, Conde de Dias, from UT library.
In Spanish, appears to be pro-Sarak, concerns La Familia Bayer
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of the personages he remembers living in the region was the enigmatic Conde de Das...
Same guy? Sounds like Albert to me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From The Nation, V.76, issue 1957, January 1, 1903:
| Truth is no longer in a well. From the Esoteric Centre of Washington she has come out, and even now, but sexless and pure, in the astrality of the Occultist, Dr. A. de Sarak, Count of Das, she is radiating forth, "forward, ever forward," even to Boston, "dissipating darkness" by luminous lies and "proclaiming peace" with a steady flagellation of her dearest foes, the Theosophists. Great was Blavatsky, the Russian spy who succumbed to the influence of the most notoriously ignorant quack of India; but greater still is the astrality of the Count of Das, who will "hatch out a bird or a fish in the space of a few minutes," and can thus (for in the persuasive words of his review, "this is logic") prove his title to be an Adept superior to the "poor old gentleman, proud of his title," at the head of the Theosophists. All this we learn from a rapt perusal of the first number of the first volume of the Radiant Truth, managed by Miss S. L. Lee, late a Theosophist, but now a successful scorner of that heresy, and edited by the glorious Count himself, who spells Krishna as Christna (as if Christ could be thought to derive from India!); attributes to the Vedas ideas utterly foreign to them; cites from Manu verses not found in Manu; and cheerfully endorses the claims of one Jontin, an extant alchemist, who can "manufacture the diamond, gold, and the elixir of life." But this is not all. The Radiant Truth publishes Occult secrets, and, that all may test the truth of the Truth, it even prophecies. Who would not be inspired? Hear, all ye poets and clergymen: "To facilitate inspiration, breathe from time to time the perfume of the leaves of the Lemon Verbena plant. It is good to carry about the person three leaves of the Lemon Verbena, gathered on a Sunday, three hours after sunrise." And this is the twentieth century! As to the prophecies which are to substantiate beyond cavil of the Theosophist the claims of the Occultist, only one is vouchsafed to us by the astral Count in this first number of his Radiant Truth: "Our review will meet with the greatest success." |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jim Santucci writes:
"Sarak was anti-Blavatsky because he was thrown out of the T.S back in the late 1880s or early 1890s. This is mentioned in vol. 5 or 6 of the Old Diary Leaves of Olcott."
Looks like I need to get my hands on vol. 5 or 6 of Olcott's Old Diary Leaves.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Thursday Evening Club met last night at Mr. John Minturn's residence on Washington Square, and were entertained by Dr. Albert de Sarak, the Oriental scientist. There was music by an orchestra during the evening and a seated supper after the entertainment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read an article "Wizard in the Temple" about de Sarak from the March 16, 1902 Washington Post
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read an article "Delved into the Occult" about de Sarak from the May 3, 1902 Washington Post
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read an article "De Sarak's Mystic Feats" about de Sarak from the October 17, 1902 Washington Post
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read an article "Occultists at a Dinner" about de Sarak from the March 9, 1903 Washington Post
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read an article "Double Vision Failed Him" about de Sarak from the May 8, 1901 New York Daily Tribune
Index
Henry Newlin
Agnes Marsland