1895RARE MASONIC HISTORY FREEMASONRY ROSICRUCIAN OCCULT

This book is filled with information on the Masons that you will not find anywhere. Includes sections on the Occult, Kabala, Ciphers, Ancient Mysteries and Rites and much more. The section on the Knights Templars was written before "Political Correctness" became a part of our vocabulary and is very in depth, including the part that the Catholic Church played in the false accusations, persecution and death of the Knight Templars.

From the chapter on Primitive Rites: Passage after passage of the Jewish Scriptures indicate that a "name" of God, very peculiar in itself, was placed first in the "Tabernacle of Congregating," and afterward in the Temple at Jerusalem. God said in various passages that he would "place his name there." To Moses he communicated his "name" at the Burning Bush, as he who had sent him to the children of Israel as I AM; and again Moses told him that Pharaoh would not let the children of Israel go, he declares that by his "Name" JEHOVAH he was not known, but by his name "God Almighty" (El-shadai) was he known. Rosecroixbooks. We, of course, have no certain data whereby we may be guided as to these peculiar "names," which were held so sacred. We must only conjecture that, as in all these Sacred Mysteries, the final rite was to communicate a particular word, and as that word in Hebrew was the "Name" given by the Lord Almighty to Moses, the word must have been, in all cases, such a sacred word as to command the reverence and respect of all; and we have always interpreted the third commandment, "Thou shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain," to refer to the "Tetragramation," because the Jews became so much afraid of violating that commandment that none but the high priest ever dared to use it, until at last the very pronunciation became unknown to all except the high priest, and he only used it once in each year, pronounced it aloud, to keep it in his memory.

From Chapter 5 .. OCCULTISM OF THE ORIENT AND OCCIDENT: When the Mysteries of the Orient became degenerated, and the priest for the maintenance of their order perverted them so that their original purity was corrupted, the ceremonies were so changed that the people at large were led to look upon them as of divine origin.. Hierarchal governments were soon established, and, to complete the subjugation of the people, no individual, in Egypt especially, could be made a monarch unless he belonged to the priestly caste. To keep up this system, magical performances were introduced, whereby the populace were deceived into a firm belief that the gods were realities, and that the archi-magus was in direct communication with the celestial, mundane, and infernal deities.

The Mysteries progressed from the simple names for the various phenomena manifested in nature to that of a complete system of a Pantheon, predicated upon the various myths which had been handed down traditionally as realities. The most abominable, disgusting, and lascivious practices were introduced, and submitted to by the people, because they were informed that it was by the order of the gods.

The magical rites, incantations, and deceptive practices were introduced earlier than he days of Zoroaster, and that they spread far and wide from the main centre in Chaldea. The Scriptures plainly indicate that in Babylon itself there were colleges of soothsayers and magicians. In Egypt also, when Moses and Aaron performed miracles in the presence of Pharaoh, he called for his magicians, who did the same things.

THE HOLY AND MYSTERIOUS PENTAGRAM: Called in the Gnostic schools the Blazing Star, is the sign of Intellectual Omnipotence and Autocracy. It is the star of the Magi; it is the sign of THE WORLD MADE FLESH, and according to the direction of its rays, this absolute symbol represents Good or Evil, Order or Disorder, the blessed Lamb of Ormuzd, and Saint John, or the accursed Goat of Mendes. Rosecroixbooks. It is the initiation or profanation; it is Lucifer or Vesper, the morning or the evening star. It is Mary or Lilith, victory or death. When the Pentagram elevates two of its points, it represents Satan, or the goat of the Mysteries; and when it elevates one of its points only, it represents the Saviour, goodness, virtue.

THE ORDER OF THE TEMPLE, AND HISTORY OF THE CRUSADES: The Order of the Temple was established to protect pilgrims to the sacred places of Holy Land, when on their way to Jerusalem. It differed from the Hospitallers and Teutonic Knights in being, from its very beginning, a military order.

The history of the Knights Templars is the history of the Crusades, and of chivalry itself. Bred to the profession of arms, recruited from the noblest and bravest knights of the time, the Order speedily attained a standing and importance only rivaled by the Hospitallers; while the two organizations became the mainstay and support of the crusading army, the right wing being the recognized position of the Templars, and the left that of the Hospitallers. Rosecroixbooks. The election of a chevalier of the Temple to the Crown of Jerusalem conferred on the Order a greater consideration than ever before, while their unflinching fidelity to their self-assumed thrust, and the reckless daring of their feats at arms, and their willing sacrifice of life for success, placed the Templars at the very head of the military orders of the age and won for them undying fame.

In the year 1149 the Knights Templars were appointed to defend the fortress of Gaza, the last Christian stronghold on the southern frontier of Palestine. Four years later Bernard de Tremelai, but recently made Master of the Order with forty of the knights, made an incursion into Ascalon, and having been surrounded by the Saracens, all were cut off to a man. A chronicler of the age, William of Tyre, records the current scandal that these knights merited their fate by their eagerness to secure the spoils of conquest, but the greed of gold did not militate against their bravery. Rosecroixbooks. The following year the charge was made that the Templars had surrendered to slavery and certain death a captive, an Egyptian prince, who was well inclined to profess the Christian faith. In 1166, less than fifty years from the founding of the Order, Amalric, the Latin King of Jerusalem, ignominiously hanged twelve Templars, on the charge of betraying to an emir of Nur al-Dom of Damascus, a stronghold beyond the Jordan.

This is more than just a Masonic history, it traces the origins of Freemasonry back to the earliest times and features a complete account of the OCCULT or secret mysteries that culminated in Freemasonry. This exhaustive work also covers the histories of the Knights Templar, the famous Crusaders, and the occult religions that influenced Masonry, including the Druids, Kabalah, Zoroastrianism.

Some topics include: Ancient Masonry, The ancient mysteries, Cognate orders of chivalry and the old charges of Freemasons, Six theories of the mysteries,Treatise on Eastern European, African, and Asiatic Mysteries ,The Occultism of the Orient, Western European Architects and Operative Masons in Britain, (commonly called the Antiquities and Legendary Traditions of the Craft to the close of the Operative Period in 1717) Rosecroixbooks. Comprehensive history of the Knights Templars and the Crusades, Execution of Jacques de Molai, Grand Master, Kaledar of "Old Charges," Cosmopolitan Freemasonry: craft, capitular, cryptic, Early American Masonic History, Morgan Excitement, Masonic Jurisprudence, Capitular Degrees,Cryptic Degrees, Eulogium of the Ancient Craft, Scottish Degrees Royal Order of Scotland, Order of the Eastern Star, The Rosicrucian Society

Particular attention is paid to symbolism, numerology. For example, every time you hear magician say, ABRACADABRA you are hearing the invocation of the famous MAGIC TRIANGLE of the PAGAN THEOSOPHISTS, a Pentagram in which the number of letters adds up to 666. Also includes a complete history of Pentagrams, called in the Gnostic schools, the Blazing Star, the sign of Intellectual Omnipotence and Autocracy, the Star of the Magi, sign of the World Made Flesh, which can represent either GOOD or EVIL.

A few excerpts: BLACK MASONRY - This convocation opened the modern period of Masonic Templary, or "Black Masonry," so named, it is said, from the members adopting a black costume as morning for the martyred De Molai, the last chivalric Grand Master; but in reality from the deposed military Templars having joined the Order of St John of Jerusalem, whose habit is black. Rosecroixbooks. When the Mysteries of the Orient became degenerated, and the priests for the maintenacne of their order perverted them so that their original purity was corrupted, the ceremonies were so changed that the people at large were led to look upon them as of divine origin. Hierarchal governments were soon established, and to complete the subjugation of the people, no individual, in Egypt especially, could be made a monarch unless he belonged to the priestly caste. Rosecroixbooks. To keep up this system, magical performances were introduced, whereby the populace were deceived into a firm belief that the gods were realities, and that the archi-magus was in direct communication with the celestial, mundane, and infernal deities.

This title covers an indepth history of the masonic understanding of the esoteric teachings, legends, rituals and history associated with the craft and are covered in great length. A truly must have for any mason, rosicrucian and occult collector