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Freemasonry and the Occult through the Eyes of Manly P. Hall

“Religion is the spiritual part of learning, philosophy the mental part, and the sciences, including the arts and crafts, the physical part.  As man himself has a spiritual, mental, and physical nature, and all of these natures manifest in his daily living, he must become equally informed in all the parts of his nature if he is to be self-governing. ‘Unbalanced forces perish in the void,’ declared a prophet of old;  and this is true beyond possibility of dispute.”

To discuss 21st century esotericist and scholar, Manly Palmer Hall, is inherently a much deeper conversation than that of a mere man. Palmer, of course, was himself nothing more than a man, but his life’s work in philosophy through both scientific and comparative-religious study, anthropology, sociology, psychology, and the dedication he maintained about these studies makes him a legend of sorts, without exaggeration. Whether one loved or hated him, Manly Hall became an irreplaceable influence in modern-day metaphysics.

He was a scholarly, cited, and well-versed historian of occult philosophy, making all his claims from source material of both religious texts and scientific studies. Hall even established the Philosophical Research Society (PSR), an American non-profit organization in Los Angeles, California that offers a large library of various ancient philosophical texts, and offers a variety of college degrees in the realm of philosophy. Having mysteriously died in 1990 at the age of 89, Hall’s case remained an open file in the LAPD’s homicide department for many years; the case ultimately produced very minimal prosecution despite the near certainty of his murder. To this end, since it was said that Hall’s Library at PSR was ransacked after his death, and because of his acknowledged ties to Freemasonry, it seems all too possible that Hall’s untimely demise was because of someone playing their hand against him.

Before moving ahead, it is important to address two stereotypes: firstly, dealing with the occult, and second, dealing with freemasonry. The word “occult” simply means hidden, and the fundamental definition of the Occult from a theological perspective is characterized by the belief, more or less, that all religious and philosophical thought is aiming towards one true, “hidden” path. The comparative belief and study of religion in this sense, is the Occult. This word has no direct context of good or evil.

As for Freemasonry, The Last American Vagabond does not in any sense sympathize with or argue against the fact that in Freemasonry past the 33rd degree could be considered an extension of the New World Order agenda. Of course, Freemasons will argue that there is no rank past the 33rd degree, to which they are correct as far as official statements go. However, to say that Freemasons as a whole are part of the “Illuminati” and seeking to control society through One World Government proposes half-truths formulated from research that likely did not involve source material. However, not even 33rd degree masons are free of blame, as it is simply a matter of public record that some of the most corrupt politicians throughout American history have been 33rd degree Masons (and many still hold office); even the villainous propaganda-machine, Mr. Walt Disney, was this same rank.

Freemasonry is much more than an organization of bricklayers (obviously) and this secret society has been infiltrated by what could be considered a Globalist Corporate Agenda, which is what many refer to as the “Illuminati/NWO” (and of course, it dates back much further than corporate society, this simply being the modern embodiment) While this infiltration has occurred at the top level, this hardly shows evidence to the fact that all Freemasons are maniacally-oriented, and rather proves to further shroud the society in deeper mystery and ambiguity, with the villains hiding behind the ignorance of their much-lower ranking “brothers.” 

Historically speaking, Freemasonry like the majority of secret societies from antiquity, was originally created as a communal vessel that used occult symbolism to express ancient forms of the scientific method and metaphysics. To this extent, the societies like Freemasonry were required to remain in secrecy because of the dogmatic societal stranglehold that the Catholic Church held at the time, stifling any scientific progress. It is from this perspective that researchers (including Hall himself) propose the view of history that America’s Freemasonic Founding Fathers were using Freemasonry to build a society in which to govern with fairness, enlightenment, and reason–which is quite a different picture than what today’s crop of elitist NWO-Freemasonry displays. Of course, certain researchers would argue differently, and so personal research is always recommended. A link on the subject can be read here

Manly P. Hall was a 33rd degree Freemason, and while the intention is not to put Manly Hall on a pedestal, it should instead be seen as an investigation into the authenticity of his character and his research. Even if he did run with a crowd known for its narcissistic elitism, Hall’s contribution to scholastic society cannot be understated, but where his ties were held to is an important question.



There will be no linear biography of Hall, yet instead a focus on the basis and authenticity of his research. Unfortunately, those interested in looking into him further will be hard-pressed to find a great deal of specifics. Born in 1901, young Manly lived in a time where constant records of data being kept on all individuals was simply science-fiction. As a child Manly had to leave his parents in Canada to live with relatives in the United States. From an early age he took to philosophy and comparative religion, and being raised by educated grandparents, his curiosity was well fostered. By the time he was a young man, he began writing and lecturing about his studies to any who cared to listen, and eventually forging a connection with an open-minded congregation at the “Church of the People” in Los Angeles, California; his research into metaphysics truly began.

When he was 28, Hall published what is considered his magnum opus of sorts, titled, The Secret Teachings of All Ages which serves as an all-encompassing encyclopedia to the history and tradition of Western Esotericism (Occult). The book is well over a thousand pages, and a large portion of the table of contents remains segmented below:

“The Ancient Mysteries and Secret Societies Which Have Influenced Modern Masonic Symbolism / Atlantis and the Gods of Antiquity / The Life and Teachings of Thoth Hermes Trismegistus / The Initiation of the Pyramid / Isis, the Virgin of the World / The Sun, A Universal Deity / The Zodiac and Its Signs / The Life and Philosophy of Pythagoras / Pythagorean Mathematics / The Human Body in Symbolism / The Pythagorean Theory of Music and Color / Fishes, Insects, Animals, Reptiles and Birds / Flowers, Plants, Fruits, and Trees / Stones, Metals and Gems / Ceremonial Magic and Sorcery / Hermetic Pharmacology, Chemistry, and Therapeutics / The Qabbalah, the Secret Doctrine of Israel / Qabbalistic Keys to the Creation of Man / An Analysis of Tarot Cards / Rosicrucian Doctrines and Tenets / Alchemy and Its Exponents / Freemasonic Symbolism / Mystic Christianity / The Cross and the Crucifixion / The Mystery of the Apocalypse / The Faith of Islam / American Indian Symbolism.”

Here is a link to The Secret Teachings of All Ages in its entirety. The book remains one of the single greatest collections of western comparative religion, philosophy, secret societies, and ancient science on public record. Additionally, it was published well before Manly Hall had any official contact with Freemasonry.

Far from being any sort of saintly figure, Manly Hall was socially quite an average person. He was known to have quite a sweet tooth, and for a period of time during his middle-ages he was said to grow quite large; he also married twice. However, it couldn’t be denied that Hall put a spark into whatever room he entered. He was very charismatic, and was said to have a photographic memory that allowed him to give all his lectures completely off the top-of-his-head. By the end of his career, Manly Hall wrote over 150 books and essays, and delivered around 8,000 lectures.

Here is a link to an entire list of Manly Hall’s published work. Some of his most popular titles being, “The Lost Keys of Freemasonry,” “Zen for the Western Mind” and “Esoteric Wisdom for Modern Living.”

In 1973, Hall was recognized as a 33rd degree member of Freemasonry by invitation of the society despite never being physically initiated into the craft beforehand. This was due to Hall’s extensively published material in the public domain about the histories of Freemasonry, its initiations, and its symbolism, showing that he had more knowledge about the society than most ranking members. Hall is far from the only person to receive this honor as well, and at the end of last year, rapper and social activist KRS-One went on record stating that he had similar affiliation with Freemasonry, although there was obviously no statement from the society itself. Manly was initiated into the craft 47 years after the publication of The Secret Teachings of All Ages and was 75 years old at this point, having engaged his research as a Mason for only 14 total years before his death.

To consummate this line of research, Manly’s death is an important subject matter–and leading to this, an important question must be raised. If there is a level of globalist-agenda infiltration at the top of Freemasonry, why would they have let Manly Hall research and discuss the secrets of their society so openly? And why would they go so far as to initiate him as a brother, after disseminating the vast majority of their secrets? The answers to the first question is not so difficult. While it required a lot of “research-digging” to come across the material that Manly covered, the knowledge of Freemasonry wasn’t hidden in the sense that it was not on public record; “Hidden” does not mean “classified,” and to see the true nature of how one hides real information, all a person needs to do is look at modern Pop Culture. As for why Freemasonry would initiate him, answers are not so readily available.

Record of the initiation shows that it came from the very top of the Scottish Rite (the tip of the pyramid, as it were), and in contrast with the fact that he was murdered and had a large majority of his library and research ransacked after the fact, researchers cannot help but wonder if the Freemasonic initiation may have been part of some overall agenda to reign Manly Hall and his information in at the end of his life. (This as well is a bit reminiscent of the way the FBI raided Tesla’s personal laboratory after his death).

Essentially, as strange as it sounds, Manly Hall’s house-aid, a man named Daniel Fritz, and his company were linked with Hall’s homicide, the embezzlement of his money, and the theft of his research. The narrative as told by Manly’s wife, describes Fritz taking them on a road trip to Halcyon, California from Los Angeles, and when their car broke down, improvisation forced Manly and Fritz away from Manly’s wife, who was at that point picked up by her family that they were going to visit. Fritz and Manly remained away for the night, and the next morning, Fritz called to tell Mrs. Hall that Manly had died early that morning. However, when paramedics arrived at the scene, Hall’s body was ice cold (something that could not have biologically occurred with the timeframe that Fritz gave), and furthermore, a horde of worker ants crawled from Hall’s corpse’s mouth after inspection. As stated above, the LAPD didn’t buy Fritz’ story either, and while some legal action was taken against Fritz and his cohorts after a long investigation, the legal action remained surface level, and the research into the case stopped at Daniel Fritz.



Interesting as well, in the transcript written by Manly’s wife, she mentions a thread involving the Rockefeller name, quoted,

“For a moment digressing from the issue: it is curious to say the least, that our fatal vacation started on August 26th, 1990. It is the exact date of the 52nd anniversary of my unearthing the original Bruton Church foundations and locating Bruton Vault in Williamsburg, Virginia, during the summer and fall of 1938. At the time I was forced to do so without being able to gain permission, despite the fact that the Rockefeller Restoration of Williamsburg Virginia had dug for me under the present or wrong church and had paid for it.”

The reference at hand is to Marie Bauer Hall’s search for Sir Francis Bacon’s original manuscripts that were ghost-written and given to William Shakespeare through the carefully planned network of Freemasonry, which is another article in and of itself, and proves the true depth of the research into the life of Manly Palmer Hall. Rapper and activist KRS-One called the Bacon-Shakespeare Conspiracy a hidden truth of Freemasonry that is continuing to gain light. In turn, Manly Hall was one of the first researchers to research and popularize this theory, which is how his wife first found out about it.

A full testimonial by his wife about the foul play of his death can be viewed here.

 It could be said that research into the life of Manly Palmer Hall brings about more questions than it does answers, but the answers that it does provide are truly worth remembering. Regardless of what is not yet know, when measuring Manly Hall by his content and reasoning for his research, it was always an attempt to bring ancient, esoteric knowledge to common society so that the people could better their daily lives.

In conclusion, Manly Hall’s research was about transcendence of the self for the betterment of all. Unless evidence should present itself otherwise, this shows the inherent morality behind Manly Hall, despite the fact that not all of his ideas were correct (like all researchers). Research-shills bash Hall for popularizing “New-Age ideals” but etymologically speaking, the half-truths of today’s “New Age” movement come from interpretations of ancient knowledge, and likewise, Hall’s role merely comes from interpretations of his work.

Another popular argument is that Manly Hall’s book, The Secret Destiny of America written in the 1940’s, is a textbook of sorts for the New World Order agenda. When reading the written work itself, however, it comes across a bit differently.  The subject matter covers the Freemasonic origins of the American colonies, it also proposes the idea that democracy is the fruition of Plato’s “philosopher-king” ideas of governmental rule, and how America’s founding was an inherently positive effort because of this connection. While these ideas can’t be proven to not be in connection with modern Globalist Agenda, reading the chapters demonstrates that Hall’s love of America was in its ideals, not in its reality.



Hall spoke of the alchemy of culture: as in, “transmuting the baser elements of society in order to get spiritual gold,” and using the morality of democracy for this. While The Last American Vagabond does not promote this same viewpoint entirely, it should be stated that it seems to lack NWO-agenda.

Much can be taken from the many insightful lectures and writings of Manly Hall, but this subject is surrounded by so much controversy and secrecy that each willing to take this journey into the depths of his mind should take it upon themselves to do their own research and come to their own conclusions. When embracing any new and enlightening concept, this practice can lead to only one outcome: Awakening.

Here is a brief list of some of Manly Hall’s lectures, hundreds and hundreds of which can be found on YouTube alone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svB4fqNuMxM, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tKq1F_o0W0https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aj9owh_wAJI, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sQVYOs9NX0https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDvmdUvPn98https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKPWeqcN9bQhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVO2eEXs2-4

Sources: http://www.redicecreations.com/specialreports/2006/05may/secretteachings.htmlhttp://www.sacred-texts.com/eso/sta/index.htmhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNUQ1f8UMzAhttp://www.manlyphall.org/http://beforeitsnews.com/metaphysics/2012/03/why-was-manly-p-hall-murdered-a-behind-the-scenes-look-at-bacons-spear-shakers-1895155.htmlhttp://manlyphall.info/death-of-manly-p-hall.htmhttp://www.manlyphall.info/mph-book-list.htm

Anthony Tyler
A journalist and author from Anchorage, Alaska, Anthony Tyler aims to twist the knife in both phony new-age ideals and scientific materialism by drawing attention to the rich heritage of esoteric science throughout history. Far from being “satanist,” the esoteric (i.e. occultism or comparative religion) marks the beginning of mathematics, astronomy, psychology, medicine, and even politics. Esoteric science represents a cache of little-known knowledge detailing how to decipher the human's unconscious mind--and the unconscious mind is essentially everything that the human mind is not considering at any given moment.
https://www.thelastamericanvagabond.com/category/anthony-tyler/

4 Replies to “Freemasonry and the Occult through the Eyes of Manly P. Hall

  1. It is very helpful for guys like you to do the basic groundwork about guys like this, so as to help learn how the elites got so pathological.

  2. Thank you! Your research on Hall’s life is an eye opener. I did not know that Manly Hall’s masonic involvement involved only the last fourteen years of his life! This means that most of his research was independent of the Freemasons, though he revealed much about their use of spiritual symbolism..

  3. I spent 10 years attending lectures at Philosophical Research Society in Los Feliz and mourn the loss of it when the Harris’ took over and sold Hall’s precious manuscripts and alchemical tomes to the Getty Center so they could found an expensive tuition ‘university’. It was a historic loss for the community.

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