In the 13th century, over a few decades, a huge literature
emerged around an unlikely tale.
Survivors of the core of early Christianity make a perilous
journey to Western Europe.
They begin a hidden bloodline, preserve immensely powerful
relics of the crucifixion, and carry a secret which, if
revealed, would turn the established church on its head.
If this seems like déjà vu, it is.
A.E. Waite gets to the core of the Grail legend, an
interwoven mass of narratives which started with seeds of
pagan folklore and grew into a massive allegorical Christian epic.
This 700 page book will satisfy both the academic reader who wants
a survey of the Grail literature, and the more mystically inclined
who seek the Grail itself.
Waite examines in great detail every known
source text for the Grail legend.
His literate style makes interesting reading for well-educated readers,
despite the repeating themes and story lines.
Unlike some of the other writers on this topic, Waite is organized,
focused, and not hesitant to turn a critical eye on half-baked theories.
In the last two hundred pages, he attempts to make some
sense of it all.
He examines and dismisses 19th century theories which linked the Grail
to the Templars, or Masons, as well as the
unorthodox Cathars, Albigensians and Waldensians of Southern France.
His conclusion is that there is an 'inner church'
in Christianity: not a conspiracy or a subterranean sect, but
a mystical core.
Instead, Waite's concept of the hidden church is based on a deep comprehension
of the sacrament of communion, and the Holy Grail is symbolic of this.
Waite published this magnum opus
about the time that he (with Pamela Smith)
was putting the finishing touches on his
Tarot deck.
A close read of this book will illuminate
much of the Waite Tarot deck symbolism.
![Sir Galahad, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (detail) [1864] (Public Domain Image)](img/galahad.jpg)