The Truth About Secret Societies

Let me tell you a secret that I haven’t shared with anyone else before. When I was 23, I applied to be a member of Freemasonry. I had to send in a hand-written letter to the local Masonic lodge, but I haven’t heard back ever since, which means that for some reason, they didn’t accept my application. I was fascinated at the time with secret societies, just like many other people around the world. But what are their true secrets and goals?

Although Freemasonry is the biggest, oldest and most well-known secret society today, it’s not the only one. It’s estimated to have about 6 million members worldwide, with a central Grand Lodge in each country or state. However, unlike most people think, there’s no global headquarter pushing a single agenda, lodges operate quite independently of each other, and very often they don’t even recognize each other officially.

Unlike some myths, its roots don’t go back to ancient Egypt or to the Temple of Solomon, Freemasonry started only in the 17th century. Back then, it was groups of real masons or stonebuilders who formed local trade organizations, and used secrecy to protect the know-how of the craft from outsiders. It was only later that the so-called speculative form of Freemasonry came into existence, which served more as a social club than a trade union.

However, this movement kept the name, the symbols and the rituals of the masons, and imbued them with allegorical meanings. According to modern Freemasons, it is a peculiar system of morality, veiled in allegory, and illustrated by symbols. In other words, it is a specific set of ideas and moral values intended to make good men better, and prepare them for the life ahead. Rituals are acted out parables that are meant to teach moral lessons to the members. Symbols further focus the mind to these specific values that Freemasonry promotes.

So then, what is Freemasonry all about? It is a fraternity of like minded men seeking to make themselves better, and assist others in doing the same. It is one of the biggest charitable organizations in the world, although their donations mostly remain anonymous. In spite of popular beliefs about world domination, it’s forbidden to discuss politics, business and religion inside the lodges. They are nonpolitical and nonsectarian; the only requirements are that you be an adult male, believe in God, and have a sincere desire for self-improvement.

When you read about what they actually do in practice, it sounds quite boring. Their regular meetings are nearly identical to a pensioners club, they read the minutes, pay the bills, receive petitions and refer them to committees, vote on petitions and applications, and occasionally welcome new members with their special initiation ritual.

But if they’re really so ordinary and mundane, why do they keep secrets? First of all, they mostly keep their rituals secret, which don’t have any practical utility anyway. By dividing the outsiders from the initiates, they create a strong sense of community, where the members may feel special to be among the chosen ones. These childish secret handshakes, signs and oaths serve as a bondage that glue the Masons together.

Some even say that Freemasonry is a boy’s club for adults. Many secret societies in general served as a private insurance for individuals before the era of the modern healthcare system and government-funded social security. In case of need, members could rely on each other’s help, and secret societies still function as a tool for relief, but to a lesser degree.

Secondly, almost all such societies are bent on following traditions, which – among with nowadays seemingly strange rituals – includes secrecy. This is especially true if you look at various academic and student fraternities. Freemasonry follows its traditions in very much the same way, and is no more sinister than the innocent gatherings of university students who seek a sense of belonging.

Thirdly, many brotherhoods keep secrets out of practical necessity. Fraternities have always attracted the biggest minds in history, and promoted individual liberty, free – often radical – thinking and the reformation of society. In fact, Freemasons would be better described as free thinkers. Thus they were often attacked and even banned by the ruling forces: by religious organizations and political parties. In order to survive, they had to remain hidden, and keep their members and agenda secret.

One such famous group was the Illuminati, whose goals were to oppose superstition, religious influence over public life, and abuses of state power. Ironically, after the movement died, it created a basis of mass superstition in modern-day culture. More about this in the episode titled “The truth about conspiracy theories”.

Besides these two famous secret societies and the college fraternities mentioned, there are also several other groups that are based on ancient teachings of mystery schools. These magical organizations include the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the Ordo Temple Orientis, the Rosicrucians and Thelema founded by Aleister Crowley, among many others.

The common thing about secrets though, is that people are generally very bad at keeping them. Most of the rituals of the freemasons are now an open secret, and even Freemasons themselves have opened up to the public in recent years. After its decline, the internal documents, correspondence and literature of the Illuminati were seized by the government and publicly disclosed. Likewise, the secrets of the Golden Dawn have been revealed, and subsequently they gave up secrecy deliberately to be able to recruit new members.

Although my application to Freemasonry was unsuccessful, I don’t regret it now. Since then, I realized that these secret societies don’t actually hold the mysteries I was after. That’s one of the reasons I created my own mystery school, which helps you discover the true secrets of life without outdated traditions and arcane rituals.

In this free report, I’ll reveal my number one secret to spiritual enlightenment that almost nobody else speaks about. Download it now below, to find out what it is! I can guarantee you, you’ll be surprised!

Memento Mori!