The count of Gabalis, or the extravagant mysteries of the cabalists

...prelates, friars, and nuns: in short original: "In fine", people of all ranks and social standings. Some of them were interested in communicating original: "Converse" with angels, others with devils, others with their guardian spirits original: "Genius", and others with incubi original: "Incubus's". Some devoted themselves to curing diseases, some to astronomy original: "Star-gazing", some to the secrets of theology original: "Divinity", and almost all to the philosopher's stone.

They all agreed that these "grand secrets"—and especially the philosopher's stone—were very difficult to discover, and that only a few people ever attain them. But each of them had such a high opinion of himself as to believe that he was among the elect elect: in this context, those chosen by God or nature to receive hidden, divine knowledge. Fortunately, the most prominent among them were at this time waiting with infinite impatience for the arrival of a lord who was a great cabalist cabalist: a student of the Kabbalah, a mystical tradition; in the 17th century, the term often referred more broadly to someone pursuing secret or magical knowledge, and whose estate lies upon