Editing Gustav Meyrink (section)

==Prague==

Meyrink lived in Prague for twenty years and has depicted it many times in his works. In 1889, together with the nephew of poet [[Christian Morgenstern]], Meyrink established his own banking company, named "Meier & Morgenstern".

In Prague an event occurred which played a providential role in Meyrink's life. Meyrink described it in the [[autobiographical]] [[short story]] "The Pilot". That day, 14 August 1892, on [[Assumption of Mary|Assumption]] Eve, Meyrink, twenty-four years old, was allegedly standing at his table with a gun at his head, determined to shoot himself. At that moment he heard a strange scratching sound and someone's hand put a tiny booklet under his door. The booklet was called [[Afterlife]]. Meyrink was surprised by this dramatic coincidence and started to study the literature of the [[occult]].<ref name="mf" /> He studied [[Theosophy (Blavatskian)|theosophy]], [[Kabbalah|Kabbala]], Christian [[Sophiology]] and Eastern [[mysticism]]. Until his death Meyrink practiced [[yoga]] and other occult exercises. Results of these studies and practices are found in Meyrink's works, which almost always deal with various occult [[tradition]]s.

In 1902 Meyrink was charged with fraud. He was charged with using [[Kardecist spiritism|spiritualism]]{{how?|date=December 2022}} in order to benefit from banking operations. Though after two months he was released from jail, his banking career was effectively ended. His jailhouse experiences are depicted in his most famous novel, ''[[The Golem (Meyrink)|The Golem]]'' (1913–14).<ref name="irwin">{{ cite book | author-link = Robert Irwin (writer) | author = Irwin, R. | chapter = Introduction | title = The Golem | editor = Gustav Meyrink | others = Mitchell, M. (translator) | location = Sawtry | publisher = Dedalus / Ariadne | year = 1995 | pages = 11–21 | isbn = 1-873982-91-7 }}</ref>