compendium of knowledge. I have been studying Masonic & Hermetic Philosophy, Psychology, Anthropology, Astrology, etc. for the last ten years....and this book just left my jaw hanging, in wonder and rapture. You will see what appears to be originals of many "occult" images that permeate the mass-market. This is high-quality art that begs to be placed on even the wealthiest person's coffee-table. Even if you only purchase this book for it's superb artwork and Masonic / Hermetic / Kabalistic illustrations, pictures/paintings & Alchemical drawings, you will not be disappointed!!! I recommend this book to people who do not like to read and to those who Love to Read! Either way, you cannot lose. I am particularly interested in the "man with four faces," because of a Vision I had in 1991.... Looks like I am not the only person to ever draw The Conundrum. You will be enthralled with the Artistic Quality of this massive book and you will treasure it's contents forever. This is an absolute "must-have" for all Students of "The Secret Teachings of All Ages!"
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Summary: The Book to Build an Occult Library On!
Review: After years of study and collecting books on occult knowledge, I came across "The Secret Teachings of All Ages" by Manley P. Hall. I wish I had known about it sooner. This would have been the first book I ever purchased on "hidden" doctrine, and would have eliminated the need for many lesser volumes in my library. If for that reason alone, the price was worth it.
The book's value compounds, however, when you consider the erudition and insight Hall gives to his subject. No other ten books even come close to communicating what he does in this one excellent volume, and even though your studies might not end here, you could easily finish reading this book and never want for another occult text in your lifetime. Hall not only covers every staple of the occult diet, but adds in loads of tasty morsels that most students never dreamed of. The chapters on Islam and Native American traditions alone made this text invaluable. This is an author who truly understands the "secret doctrine" of occultism and sees its connections with all the movements and organizations of Creation. Whether you've been studying this subject for decades or are just beginning, this book is a vital necessity for your library. Don't worry about the hardcover price. Buy it anyway. The binding, artwork, and layout make it worth it. I count my copy as one of the best purchases I've ever made, and I'm sure you will, too.
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Summary: Several Editions -- All Excellent
Review: Dear Friends, Please note there are several editions of "The Secret Teachings of All Ages" by Manly P. Hall. Each is outstanding, but it might help to note some recent differences. The Philosophical Research Society of Los Angeles (www.prs.org) publishes beautiful, large-sized editions of Mr. Hall's original classic. Tarcher/Penguin, in partnership with PRS, publishes a "Reader's Edition," which features the complete, unabridged text in a more compact size and at a lower price, though with an abridged selection of illustrations. I am writing as the editor/publisher of the Tarcher/Penguin edition. If you would like to learn more about the new "Reader's Edition" of "The Secret Teachings," please visit either www.lapismagazine.org/horowitz.html or www.mitchhorowitz.com. You can visit PRS at www.prs.org. In any format, "The Secret Teachings of All Ages" is a book you will come to treasure. Best, Mitch Horowitz
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Summary: THERE IS NO BETTER THAN THIS SPIRITUAL PRIMER!!
Review: For understanding the scope of spiritual subject matter, this is your guide!! What else can I say; this paperback volume is much easier to carry around also, than the big heavy hardback volume with all the beautiful paintings and pictures!! This will help you understand the "Kingdom Within" and to reactivate your understanding of the reminder Jesus gave when he said: "All these things that I do ye shall do also". Other similar reminders were masonic: you will reap what you sow; and Platonic: Know Thyself.
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Summary: New cheap edition on unworthy cheap pulp paper
Review: I agree that this book is venerable. It mentions psychoactives in the Mysteries and cites an 1845 book that also mentions them -- demonstrating that Graves (and Wasson) were by no means the first 20th-Century scholars to recognize this connection.
I would be happy with the cheap new edition, less tall and wide but thicker, with arabic rather than roman page numbering -- if only it used decent, worthy paper. I can't stand the look and feel of pulp paper. I can't believe that decent paper is too expensive. We still need a mid-priced version, on good paper. I recommend the larger format versions if you can afford them. I'd be glad to pay a few dollars more to get this new edition on decent-quality paper.
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Summary: Finally, Something Practical.
Review: I own the big version, which I love, but I am so glad to have the book in this format. First, it is much easier and lighter to tote around with me. Second, it is much easier to read. Third, I'm glad that this book is being made more widely available to the general public. Buy this version to read and study, but try to get the original too. It's simply beautiful.
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Summary: A neccessity for every initiate and scholar
Review: I remeber the first time that I was shown this tome nearly twenty years ago. My father pulled this volume down from his bookshelf and let me read through it, watching my expressions as I beheld its beauty. I was left with a thirst of wanting more. His copy was an older paperback edition that he acquired in some little esoteric bookstore and at that time this was not an easy book to find, now its much easier (for better or worse) to gain secrets that were once privy to the few.
Since I first beheld this magical book, I was able to procure the large (very large) hardcover limited edition signed by the author - the true gem of my library, priceless.
This is a masterpiece of esoteric literature, one that you'll never part with. Truly a must have volume that belongs in the library of every Freemason, Kabbalist, or Rosicrucian. The title says it all. You'll spend hours upon hours in reflection and enthralled at the details of the text and illustrations. The full color plates are beautifully rendered and will literally leap off the pages. Now that this volume is more easily available and you are at least looking for it (or you wouldn't be here, now would you?) I have one suggestion - BUY IT
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Summary: Brilliant - but just the beginning
Review: Manly P Hall fulfilled an important mission: to inspire the people of North America, to point out the unmistable presence of a Secret Doctrine and Tradition, and to lay the foundation for the Revelation of that teaching. This book is the spear-point that he used to break through the first line of combat. But Manly Hall was NOT authorized to reveal the teaching itself, and while this book is incredible in it's beauty and comprehensiveness, it does not and cannot reveal directly the practical and essential nature of the teachings. There is no doubt whatsoever that Manly Hall knew and worked with the Mercury, the Salt and the Sulphur. There is no doubt that he worked with the Fire. There is no mistaking the knowledge of a true Alchemist. Read this book, study it, absorb it; it will prepare your mind and heart to comprehend the Real Knowledge when you see it - but to recognize that true knowledge you must be sincere and humble. Arrogance and pride will keep the doors closed to you. It is unfortunate that these qualities are so enthusiastically encouraged by our modern culture, qualities that every genuine Master strictly condemns. Be humble when searching for Wisdom, and having found it, be more humble still. To discover the essential and practical knowledge that Manly Hall pointed toward, read the works of Samael Aun Weor available at the Gnostic Institute zshop here on Amazon.com.
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Summary: This could be a better book...
Review: Sure this book is a classic. I gave this book three stars because this could be a better book. Although the full text is presented in this edition,most of the pictures and illustrations are missing. It's claimed that most of the pictures and illustrations are not the most important ones, then why put them in the other editions? Sounds like the buyer is being short changed. Hall says in the title that these are secret teachings. It's not secret, because all of this knowledge is available in books if you look hard enough. However, he does a brilliant job of putting all this information together and the buyer is getting a good deal. The truth is that all secret knowledge is already in books and openly available. It's true that the ancient sages would be irresponsible in putting this knowledge explicitly out in the open. It could be used by evil people to work incredible destruction. The knowledge though had to be transmitted or it would be lost. How then is the knowledge open to the worthy and hidden from the unworthy? Hall gives the clue in the chapter on Shakespeare. That is by constantly rereading and studying the murky passages and others in occult books, the understanding will open up and the secrets revealed. This is the master key to using other cryptograms as well. In India, the ancient sages had students of yoga reread and study well known yoga texts such as the yoga sutras of Pantajali. Why? To discover the secrets and inner meanings of the texts. The goal of the ancient mysteries is for man to save himself and reveal the mysteries of life. This could not be accomplished if the knowledge had no way to be known. The occult has genuine teachings, but it also has many frauds and con artists. They couldn't care less about the occult, but they care about your money. Hall isn't lying when he says these are secret teachings. They are not secret on the surface meaning, but they are in the depths of the knowledge revealed only by study.
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Summary: SECRET TEACHINGS OF ALL AGES - What a lovely book!
Review: The Secret Teachings of All Ages is truly an encyclopedic volume, richly illustrated with masonic, hermetic, qabbalistic and rosicrucian symbolism (the illustrations are breathtaking) and philosophical interpretations.
While the book covers wide range of topics, it essentially follows the path of Western esoteric traditions - all the way back from Egypt and Greece, through the famous European alchemists (St. Germain and Nicholas Flammel), and onward to Rosicrucians - as can be expected from the title, but it briefly touches upon symbolism from Islam and Amrican Indian symbolism.
