Of Errors & Truth: Man Restored to the Universal Principle of Knowledge

Louis Claude de Saint-Martin (1743-1803) was a striking and influential figure in his time. Of Errors & Truth is his first work, published under the pseudonym "The Unknown Philosopher". In it, he develops a critique of the then-fashionable Enlightenment and Encyclopedist empiricism and materialism, from the point of view of an esoteric and Platonic form of Christianity. Pseudonymous though it was, the book made his reputation.In this book, he argues against the idea that all knowledge, and all social forms, are built up from sensory experience and contingencies of life by a process of abstraction and adaptation. One of the key principles of his argument goes back at least to Plato's Meno: that knowledge is possible only because of innate or pre-existing ideas or forms of experience. In other words, abstraction from the stream of immediate events and experiences must inevitably be guided by some pre-existing target, not itself given in the stream of concrete events, but brought to it by the experiencing and inquiring mind.The author pursues this theme through a variety of domains, from metaphysics through politics and natural sciences, some times more effectively than others. In this work he was still very much the student of his teacher, Martines de Pasqually, whose methods he later abandoned to follow a more interior path. However, the seeds of this later orientation can be seen in this first book, with its stress on what is already and always available within.Despite his extensive influence on European esotericism, little of Saint-Martin's work has been available in English, and this translation is an important contribution to filling this gap. The translator has done extensive prior work in making French esoteric texts available in English, and has worked valiantly to do so with this book as well. Unfortunately, the translation suffers from several peculiarities that make it less readable than it could be.First, there are some serious flaws in proof-reading, leading to breaches in continuity that require a good deal of thought to reconstruct, when that is possible.Second, the editorial decision to use contractions whenever possible, no doubt to avoid unnecessary stuffiness in an already dense text, has been applied more mechanically than mindfully, especially with "it's", making certain passages ludicrous or even unintelligible. For example, the first line of the second paragraph on page 63 should be "precious though it is", but appears as "precious though it's" -- as though search and replace had been used on every instance of "it is", without regard to meaning.Finally, there are occasional mistranslations of technical terms – for example, there is an extensive discussion of the best way to translate term "étendue", but it's pretty clear from the context that Saint-Martin is referring to the Cartesian idea of extension as a property of matter (res extensa), a point that does not enter into the discussion.In other words, the translation reads as though a very competent first draft had gone directly to press, without having had a thorough proof-reading, or the attentions of an outside reader. It would be a noble contribution if a small group of friends of Saint-Martin were able to meet regularly and read the text aloud, compiling an account of all the infelicities, and communicating them to the translator to assist in preparing a revised edition.

Dr. Edouard Blitz wrote on 1896 about the particularly recommended works of the Unknown Philosopher. These works were only available on French language to the disadvantage of the American audience at the time. The situation has not significantly improved in more than 100 years, except for the translations of Piers. A Vaughan. The Of Errors & Truth is a treasure trove of teachings about regeneration, i.e. what steps man can take to return to his original condition, before the Fall, which the French mystic Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin wrote in 1775. Finally, available in English this a must have classic.

This book is an excellent translation of the mystic and philosopher Saint- Martin's "Des Erreurs et de la Verite". It is easy to read and understand, and has added paragraph titles to the long chapters, which makes contemplation of the material easier. This book explains the errors of a strictly materialistic point of view, prominent during the enlightenment and even more prominent today. It provides those with spiritual longings of the nature of good and evil and free will, to name a few. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who has a desire for a spiritual philosophy that will renew their faith, and ground their convictions. For those students of Saint-Martin, this book (along with Man: His True Nature and Ministry) will give a greater understanding of his philosophy and hopefully be an aid to further their spiritual path.

Except for very select few Louis Claude St. Martin's works are pretty much closed to French elite. This is being changed with Piers Vaughan translating the book Of Errors and Truth! Piers has laid open for the entire world a book which was before now only known to academics and those fluent in French. This book contains an excellent Introduction and shows some of the nuance that only Piers can deliver!! Even references Pasqually and the Elus Coen Masonic group that St. Martin was a part and very dedicated student of. Get this if you love Martinism

This is a great translation of a difficult esoteric work. Piers Vaughan has done an outstanding job adding structure and his occasional commentary keeps the reader focused on seeing the meaning behind the text. This translation is the go to for English reading student of this spiritual lineage or for someone interested in understanding the intellectual context of the age which produced it.

Piers has given the students of St. Martin's philosophy a tremendous gift and is to be commended for doing so. This book is a *must read* for anyone interested in this branch of esoteric pursuit; and it must be more than "read", it must be studied. The end result of the editing has made this volume much more manageable for the modern reader. Highly recommended.

A wonderful translation and a true gift to any sincere seeker of the Way of the Heart. This is the first authentic translation of this seminal work into English and it is beautifully done, with comprehensive annotations and explanations provided by Piers. Any devotee of St. Martin must immediately add this to their collection!

Fantastic translation. Piers did a great job of bringing the subtle context of "old French" to his English translation. This interpretation is a must-have book for any serious English-speaking student of LCdSM.

Mr. Vaughan is doing a service to all English speaking esotericists by translating many of the unknown French language works written by such masters as Saint-Martin, Papus, Robert Ambelain etc.This is an incredible early work by Saint-Martin, highly recommended

PV's use of Footnotes on the page where the reference occurs is refreshing, enlightening, and increases the readability.Excellent translation, and I look forward to more translations of Louis-Cluade de saint-Martin's works from Mr Vaughan.

Pünktich angekommen! Mein Lieblingsbuch, ein wirklich tolles Buch und absolut empfehlenswert für alle. Der Entwicklungsprozess betrifft alle Menschen und hilft, Spiritualität zu lerne.

This is another outstanding translation by Piers. Thank you for your dedication.