Secret Societies: Gardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

of these swords is substantial: Several rods are welded together down the length of the blade, joining the various levels of metal together. It was then heated and pounded into shape. Sword-making was an awesome task. Smaller rods that were carburized (improved carbon) were introduced to increase the hardness. This formed steel, an alloy of iron with small amounts of carbon, was introduced into the edges of the blade because it was stronger and more effective.

Through the 5th to 10th centuries a.d. —the approximate period of King Arthur—sword smiths actually managed to manipulate this piled structure to create wonderful designs within the blade. The method remained virtually unchanged even into the 20th century, as can be seen with the daggers of the Nazis, who utilized it extensively.

The patterns are seen via the varying degrees of trace elements within the different rods, showing alternating shades. The rods are invariably twisted down the shaft, forming a spiral effect. These "twisted" swords are seen as early as the 1st century B.C. in the La Tene period, although more effectively used from the 3rd and 5th centuries—the exact early period of Arthur. Cassiodorus was a secretary of Theodoric, and in a.d. 520 he wrote to a northern Germanic tribe regarding a gift of words praising their skills, especially the shadows and colors seen in the blades, which he likened to "tiny snakes." The 10th century Kormaks Saga says this concerning the sword Skofnung:

.. .a covering goes with it and thou shall leave it quiet; the sun must not shine on the upper guard, nor shall thou comest to the fighting place, sit alone, and there draw it. Hold up the blade and blow on it; then a small snake will creep from under the guard; incline the blade and make it easier for it to creep back under the guard.

It is the considered opinion of some scientists that this implies that the dew would reveal the pattern of the serpent upon the sword, giving the impression that a serpent is emerging from the sheath.

This inclusion of the serpent in the blade was eventually replaced with iron inlaid letters and symbols, and Christian phrases

The Serpetrf Sword

such as In Nomine Domini ("In the name of the Lord"). The remarkable archaeological fact of serpents appearing in the designs of 5th century swords links perfectly with the time of Arthur. As the Pendragon or Head/Chief Dragon Lord, he would certainly have been seen with such a device, and in the stories mentioned previously, there are textual links in the legend. Could it be that the tales of Arthur and his serpentine or dragon swords were based upon reality?

And so, coming full circle, I am drawn back to that first initiation years ago and the sword that was bestowed upon me and which is now back with the order. It stood nearly 5 feet with a gold pommel of writhing dragons. The silver sheen of the blade when turned in the light would reveal a beautiful pattern of two entwined serpents, heads coming closer together as they raced toward the tip.

The sword, as a fighting tool, has been with man for more than 4,000 years, and as such it has crept into the comradeship of the warrior elite that could afford its luxury. Symbolism of wisdom, energy, and illumination has been melded in with the steel structure in the same way that the sword has been melded into the myths and tales that were themselves stories of inner light. The shining sword is symbolically utilized throughout secret societies today and has been so for hundreds of years—creating a bond between man today and man yesterday.

The Secret History oF King Arthur and Robin Mood

King Arthur

In the last few chapters, we have often come across King Arthur and tales of the Grail. What we have to understand is that these tales hide secrets. These hidden depths were placed there by various secret organizations that were too afraid to place the truth openly before the public for fear of Catholic inquisitions and Christian intolerance. In the search for the truth about the secrets of secret societies, we need to understand what they were trying to tell us and what links these tales might have to the history and lineage of secret societies. We have already learned that religion and the Ophite, or serpent worship of wisdom, are at the core of the world's secret societies. Will we discover the same in the tales of Arthur and his literary-related character of Robin Hood?

Most historians place the Arthurian period in the 5th century a.d., and so this is where I began my historical journey to find the "real Arthur" and the real "truth."

In about a.d. 402, Stilicho, the Vandal Regent of Rome, needed the remainder of his troops back in Rome to defend the homeland against the invading Goths. This left Britain militarily vulnerable and weak, and by 410 the Anglo-Saxons were mounting a terrible invasion that set the countryside alight. But why did the Saxons delay their invasion? The answer lies within the extremely clever way the Romans had previously cleared the country of what they

Secret Socie+les: Eardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

called "arbarians"—that is, those people who would have either utilized inside intelligence to assist any invading force, or who would have undermined the existing rule. The Romans were using secret service methods of infiltrating and undermining the existing power base.

Britain was near to death until Stilicho arrived, and that with the Saxons defeated, the seas were safer and the Picts were broken, thereby making Britain secure.

So wrote the early Christian poet and historian, Claudian, in a.d. 399. Even the Welsh monk Gildas (c.504-570) described how "the legions came into close contact with the cruel enemies and slew great numbers of them. All of them were driven beyond the borders and the humiliated natives rescued from the bloody savagery which awaited them."

For eight years, between the Romans leaving and the Saxons invading, it appears that Britain enjoyed a brief time of relative peace. This peace was shattered violently as the Saxons instigated their bloody onslaught in the summer of 410. By winter, the British "civitates" had simply had enough of their Roman pretender, Constantine III, and the old Roman system, and so they decided to go it alone. However, the British message to the Emperor Honorius left open a small inroad, just in case they were making a mistake. Britain wanted to stay in the Roman Empire, not as subjects, but as allies aiding each other with trade and defense. So Britain became an autonomous state within the Empire, especially after the sacking of Rome by Alaric's Goths in 410.

This balance of power continued, and in a.d. 417 the units of Comes Brittaniarum partially reoccupied the Saxon forts along the southeast coast. This British force comprised six units of cavalry and three of infantry, a unique mobile field army whose method of fighting was influenced by the Scythian warrior-elite who had been brought to Britain by the Romans. These Scythians also brought many of the serpent-related traditions we have found associated with Arthur—including the worship of Uther/Zeus and the plunging of the blood-soaked sword into and out of the ground as an offering.

Following the death of Honorius, Rome suffered badly at the hands of usurpers, and the final remnants of the Roman army vanished from Britain. The exact date of their departure is not known,

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although Nennius, the 8th century Christian historian, tells us that Vortigern had become king of Britain by a.d. 425. This probably referred to the southern regions and those parts of Britain previously held by the Romans. Vortigern, it seems, filled the gaping hole that Rome left behind.

Whether there is any truth in it or not, the Historia Brittonium states that it was Vortigern who invited Hengist and Horsa, the Norse warriors, to settle in Kent, only to later argue and fight against them. The old system of Roman rule finally began to crumble.

Vortigern's answer was to invite yet more foreigners to settle in the country, creating for them settlements called foederati. Was this wise council on Vortigern's part? It may just have been his only answer, and a Roman answer at that, for the Romans had utilized this settlement procedure themselves. The Romans had also been powerful enough to keep these settlements under control, and had more incentives to offer them in exchange for their loyalty, whereas Vortigern had no other choice. Word had reached him that the Picts and Scots were massing on the borders, and he simply did not have the power to repel them. His tactic was Roman: bring in other Barbarians and get them to fight each other—a classic Roman and later secret service tactic. It seems, however, that rather than settling warrior Barbarians on his coastlines in order to protect Britain, Vortigern opened the floodgates to the land-hungry Saxons. Vortigern was defeated by Hengist in 455, the lowlands were put to the fire, and the Britons fled the country, heading for Spain and Armorica. The economy collapsed, and by 461 Vortigern the Great was dead.

There was a recovery of British fortunes a decade or so later, when Ambrosius Aurelianus (thought to be the son of a Roman consul) fought against the Saxons. On Marlborough Downs in Wiltshire there is a huge earthwork built by a British chieftain between 2900-2500 B.C., and later used by the Romans and Saxons. Archaeological evidence of battles from this period on this reused fort clearly shows that the Saxons were being repulsed.

It was then the turn of Arthur, who upheld the pride of the British nation through various documented battles. Many historians state that the true Arthur is elusive in the texts of the time,

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

but there are hundreds of Welsh texts that refer to Arthur, which have not yet been translated into English. Not being a Welsh scholar, I, unfortunately, have to leave this task to them, but we should remember that there is more yet to learn.

This history of the 5th century Britons is interesting, but only partially of interest in our search for the secrets' depths. The Romans had brought the Scythians to Britain, and the Scythians brought along their cultural belief systems. They fought well, and in all probability, aided the Britons with training in their warrior ways.

The memory of these cultural additions seeped into the British consciousness and became British, Celtic, and eventually "New Age." This very real struggle for power and for the defense of the realm was an ideal backdrop to the mystery that is now called the "Arthurian cycle."

There probably was an Ambrosius, an Arthur, and a Vortigern, and they doubtless fought great battles and overcame terrible troubles. But would they have understood the idea of the Grail as the "serpent people" would have understood it? I doubt it. Of course, they would have been familiar with stories of a legendary "magical substance" that could help soldiers recover, heal battle wounds, and "resurrect" them in great numbers. This understanding would have come from what they had picked up from the myths that had been encoded with the wisdom of the shamanic "serpent people," otherwise known as the Shining Ones.

This magical substance was "mixed" in the sacred mixing bowl, and Britain in the 5th century was itself a great and wondrous "mixing bowl." Cultures from across the known world traveled to it. Exports of British copper, lead, tin, and much more were shipped across Europe and the Mediterranean. There is even evidence that the ancient Egyptians visited her shores and that a Pharaoh's daughter may well have settled in Ireland. Folklore tradition also tells us that Joseph of Arimathea visited these shores, and owned tin mines in Cornwall—although this I seriously doubt. If traditions such as these are far from truth, I had to ask myself, then why were these strange tales invented?

If, as it seems, Britain was an important place, or even just as important as, say, Gaul, then why could Britain not also be the new home to the secret of the Grail? As I have shown in the Serpent

The Secret History of King Arthur and Robin Hood

Grail, the Grail on the "first level" or venom, is not place-specific. It is a secret held by all the civilizations of the globe, called many things, but essentially the same substance.

Robin Hood

Etymologically, Robin comes from the Norman "Robert," a form of the Germanic Hrodebert, and it originally meant "famous" or "bright"—possibly "shining."

Robin Hood is therefore the "Bright Hood," a similar name to the Naga with their illuminated serpent or cobra hoods. As many have previously stated there are strong links between the origin of Robin Hood and the Green Man, who is also the ancient Egyptian god Osiris and the Greek-Roman god Dionysus/Bacchus, and so we should hope to find something of interest in the many stories surrounding this enigmatic character.

It's no surprise to also discover that the Templars are very much associated with Robin, and many of the tales of Robin also match in format those of King Arthur. In the popular retelling by Henry Gilbert (Robin Hood, 1912) we find mention of a pig-like serpent. Robin wants to know who the hermit of Fountains Dale is and how the one named as "Peter the Doctor" managed to cure people:

"Oh," said Nick with a smile, "I meant no ill-will to Peter. Often hath his pills cured our villeins when they ate too much pork, and my mother—rest her soul—said that naught under the sun was like his lectuary of Saint Evremond."

Peter the Doctor speaks, "I deserve well of all my patients, but"—and his eyes flashed—"that great swinehead oaf of a hermit monk—Tuck by name, and would that I could tuck him in the deepest, darkest hole in Windleswisp marsh!— That great ox-brained beguiled me into telling him of all my good specifics. With his eyes as wide and soft as a cow's he looked as innocent as a mawkin, and asked me this and that about the cures which I had made, and ever he seemed the more to marvel and to gape at my wisdom and my power. The porcine serpent! He did but spin his web the closer about me to my own undoing and destruction. When I had

Secret Societies: Bardlners Forbidden Knowledge

told him all, and was hopeful that he would buy a phial of serpent's oil of Jasper—a sure and certain specific, my good freemen, against ague and stiffness."

So, Friar Tuck is like a snake-pig and Peter the Doctor hopes to sell him "serpent oil." It is likely that Gilbert used the "serpent oil" in the early 19th century, as this peculiar substance was quite fashionable at the time, and no matter how hard I searched I could not find Gilbert's source material.

There are elements of the Robin Hood myth that relate to other legends. The "Tree of Life" is seen as "Robin's Larder Tree," supplying all that could be required, similar to the "Horn of Plenty" or the "cauldron" of Celtic folklore.

Robin's link with the Horned God is also telling, as he is lord and master over the human "animals" of the Forest and they are guardians of their stolen treasure, similar to the hoarding, serpent Nagas of Hinduism. They do good deeds for those who deserve them and dastardly deeds to those who do not. In the connected tales of Robin Goodfellow, the "trickster of the woods" also known as Puck, there is also the link of Sib, the fairy who lives in the hillside and is linked as being a "serpent spirit" of healing. Robin falls in love with his lady of the waters or Queen of Heaven, later to be known as the Maid Marion (Mer = Sea/water, Marion = Mary) and in many ways is undermining the new Christian world that forced itself upon this ancient mixture of Paganism. Robin Hood and Robin Goodfellow are therefore secret tales of an oppressed culture, just as are the letters and gospels of the Christian cult.

Puck, incidentally, is thought to have a much older pedigree, being traced back to an Irish Pan-like deity known as Pouka. Indeed, Robin Goodfellow is said to be born of a human mother and a god-like father in the form of Oberon (king of the fairies; Ob meaning "serpent"). He is also green like the "Green Man," which is the special healing color attributed to many things surrounding the serpent cult—such as the Emerald Tablet, the color of initiation into Gnostic mysteries, associated with the Masons and the Green Glass of the Grail.

It is believed by many that the crescent shape of the bow recalls the crescent moon and horns of the Pagan "Horned God," as does the horn Robin uses to call his people together. Even Little

The Secret History of Ming Arthur and Robin Hood

John in the tale of "Robin Hood and Sir Guy de Gisborne" is tied to a tree, being saved at the last minute by Robin disguised as Sir Guy. As with most folklore there is symbolism, myth, legend, and probably some element of a real origin.

Robin Hood may well have some aspects of his personality and acts from real historical figures, but most historians would steer away from stating anything as fact.

As Fran and Geoff Doel point out in their book, Robin Hood: Outlaw or Greenwood Myth, "the origin of Robin Hood was obscure...suggests a mythological or folklore origin."

What we also find, however, in some of the earlier tales is that Robin Hood and Little John—like Jesus and John the Baptist— were equals. In the 15th century, Walter Bower said that Robin Hood together with Little John and their companies rose to prominence. This in itself points out that both Robin and John were seen to each have their own followers very much like Jesus and John. They are therefore the "twins" of Gnosticism, like Castor and Pollux—the duality and balance.

Other elements of Robin's life and especially his death show an ancient link:

Curiously the ballad of Robin Hood's Death also has a ritualistic element, with foreknowledge and ritual 'banning' and a death by bleeding, which is suspiciously close to the ritualistic dismemberment of other European and Asiatic Springtime gods and heroes such as Tammuz, Adonis and Osiris. The cognitive connections between the outlaw and Robin the bird may be coincidental, but the possibilities of a Greenwood myth underlying the later outlaw traditions needs to be examined. (Doel, Robin Hood: Outlaw or Greenwood Myth)

Tammuz, Adonis, and Osiris are vegetation gods of greenness. Indeed Osiris himself in the Pyramid Texts at Saqqara is called the "Great Green" and often appears green-skinned as a symbol of "resurrection and life." The battle between Osiris and Set seems all the more familiar now in the struggle that ensues between Robin and his arch-rival the Sheriff of Nottingham. Osiris becomes Horus when resurrected, and we find that it is Horus who is protected by the Wadjet snake—the green snake.

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

Even in the way he dies there are links with older mysteries. Robin is ritualistically bled to death like the ancient Pagan sacrifices. The deed is done by the Abbess of Kirklees, who acts as the priestess in some ancient Pagan ritual. Could it be that the tales of Robin are more ancient than previously believed? Could they really be tales of ancient Egypt and even Sumeria? Passed down over millennia and altered by time? One thing is true: These tales were written up by clerics of the Church and members of secret orders. The Arthurian tales had influence from the white robed Cistercians and the Knights Templar—indeed it was the Templars who were protectors of the Grail itself, guardians of the secret knowledge.

Author in Roman tombs or Gateways for the dead, Cyprus

The fact remains that Christianity was stomping all over old Pagan beliefs, rewriting tales that had existed for hundreds of years. But, as the Christians were destroying cultural history, there were those who defended it. The Masons of the period in which Robin Hood grew to popularity were hiding their symbols and Pagan ideas in the framework and masonry of churches across Europe. Green Men sprang up in every sacred Christian place. Strange characters seen hiding in foliage peeped out like messengers from the past. Grails, beheaded victims, pillars of foliage,

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and images of serpents were placed everywhere and often at the behest of the same Cistercians and Templars—not to mention the myriad other orders and groups that were maintaining the hidden Gnosis which was to emerge in later times within the ranks of the so-called modern secret societies.

These peculiar and somewhat disturbing images are none other than the characters from the Pagan past—gods and deities such as Heme the Horned God and many other images of Mother Goddesses. The truth to the past of man's religious upbringing can still be seen in the stonework of Christian churches and cathedrals, in places such as Rosslyn Chapel and Lichfield Cathedral. But not just in the stone.

We must also look to the legends, for as we can see, the tales of Robin Hood are not only linked to the ancient past; they are also linked inextricably to the tales of Arthur and his search for the Holy Grail with instances such as those of the knight Gawain decapitating the Green Giant, and mysterious images of a Green Knight. It is seen clearly in the fact that the "plays" of old, enacted by local people and paraded through streets, have changed titles across time and location. From the St. George play to the Robin Hood and Green Jack, from Wildman to Green George, the basic story is the same.

These tales, as we have seen, can be traced backward across time to India and Sumeria, Egypt and Persia. They formed the basis of secret priestly orders many thousands of years ago and they still do today.

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8

Here Be Dragons

The Sacred Places oF Ancient Secret Societies

The secret societies of the globe from ancient times down to today all had many things in common. Not the least of which was the need for a place to meet. But what was the origin of the symbolism of a temple or a lodge? Why is this place a stairway to heaven? A gateway to another world? And why is the serpent or dragon often involved? If we go back across the mists of time to the original meeting places of the serpent cults and shining secret orders, will we discover the secrets of the mysterious landscape that now surrounds us?

Over the course of many years and with more air-miles than I care to remember, I have journeyed on a quest to uncover the secrets of the ancient serpent cults that I reveal in my books. Each time I journey, I discover something new. There truly is a whole new world opening up before our eyes. Suddenly, and often without warning, I am faced with a reinterpretation of history that I am simply not looking for.

In another twist in the tale of the serpent, I am about to uncover before your eyes one of the ancient truths about dragons, remembering that, in myth and in ancient history, dragons and serpents are intertwined like the coils of a pit viper.

I shall to begin in America of all places, for two reasons. Firstly, that this is the last place I would even consider looking for dragons, and, secondly, because the evidence is most profound here in archaeological terms.

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

The evidence of serpent worship in the Americas can largely be shown by the many serpent mounds that appear across the continent. The most famous by a long way is the "Serpent Mound" of Ohio, Adams County. According to some, 1 this marvelous mound is related to Stonehenge, and it is the "Dragon Guardian" of the East to Stonehenge's Secret of the West. Indeed, it is thought that the two ancient structures actually do share the same timeline and may very well have a relationship to each other—if ancient man shared the same beliefs and traveled extensively, as is the growing belief of many scholars. Of course, Stonehenge is also directly north of that infamous serpent temple, Avebury.

Dragon at Cistercian monastery

Avebury is a huge British temple and stone monument erected around 2000 B.C. in the shape of a serpent when seen from the sky. Once known as Abury which, according to Deane, 2 is evidently Abiri or Ab-ir (after the Abiri people or Cabiri who were serpent worshippers). Abir means the solar snake or fire snake.

Although some have argued whether Avebury was ever Abury or Aubury (serpent sun), the fact remains that even as far back as the 17th century there was a Mr. Aubury who said that it should be pronounced and spelled Aubury (found in the ledger book of Malmesbury Abbey).

Of course even as Ave Bury, the "Ave" reverts back to the root of "Eve" which I know means "female serpent." The pathway of Avebury passes through a large circular temple of the sun, emerging, and then winding again and ending with an oddly, not quite circular head—directly in line with "Snakes Head Hill" (Hackpen).

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Here Be Dragons

The central circle is symbolic of the sun, which is the male principle in the creative process and is symbolized elsewhere as a bull or lion. Once the serpent has passed through or around this sun circle it is recharged for new life.

In Egyptian hieroglyphs, we can see similar imagery with the symbol of the snake going over the solar disc, emerging with its head erect. Overlaid onto Avebury it is the same image! Adding to this, that the snake is often depicted with the ancient Egyptian ankh symbol dangling from its emergent neck—the Ankh being a symbol of new life—the great circle of Avebury simply has to be the "solar disk," and the pathway is the snake—thus illustrating in a painfully labor-intensive way, the ritualistic path of the serpent worshipper toward new life.

The circular aspect of the stone circles of Europe are strangely reminiscent of the temples of Quetzalcoatl, which were "circular, and the one dedicated to his worship in Mexico, was entered by a door like unto the mouth of a serpent" 3 —a very similar ritualistic inference to those based around Avebury and other stone circles.

In his book the Worship of the Serpent Traced Throughout the World, John Bathurst Deane explains, "A third description of temples consecrated to the service of the Ophites' god remains to be considered: and these were not only the most rare, the most characteristic, and the most magnificent; but, probably, the most sacred of them all. These were erected in the form of the Ophite hierogram, the serpent passing through a circle."

This hierogram is the symbol of the serpent, a circle with a snake passing through it, like a needle and thread. He continues, "They were composed, like the circular temples, of a number of Baitulia, or amber stones, so arranged as to describe the mystic circle, through which the still more mystic serpent trailed his majestic form."

And this is the truth of the Stone Circles and physical hierograms: that they were rebirthing circles (a being born again through the spirit, through the circle). I can even make a remarkable deduction from the strange word "baitulia" mentioned previously by Deane—these are betyl stones or serpents' eggs. In Wales, the serpents were said to emerge and congregate on Midsummer's Eve to blow into the Serpent Stone-Eggs or Glain Neidr, which is

Secret Societies: Dardiners Forbidden Knowledge

reminiscent of the Roman historian Pliny's tale of this activity among the Gauls. These serpent stones were said to be colored pebbles, which gave "second sight" and healing. Midsummer's Eve was the night when the serpents would role themselves into hissing balls and create the glain egg, also known as "snake stone" or "Druid's egg." In Welsh myth, even Merlin himself went in search of them.

The egg, Cosmic Egg, or Cosmogenic Egg is universally seen with the serpent—as in the symbol of the Orphic Egg shown with a snake wrapped around it. From the serpent mound of Ohio to Mithras and Cneph, the egg is associated with serpent worship. Why? According to most scholars, it is the emblem of the mundane elements coming from the creating god. Therefore, it is a symbol of the elements of the universe. Surely there is also another reason, a reason that would relate to early man more than such complex ideas sprung into the mind of modern scientists and scholars.

What is an egg? Simply an "entry portal" into this world. A device to give life. And what animal is seen in relation to this unique device and portal? It is the snake. Again, it is the snake—a symbol of the life force—that creates the device, which gives life.

Megalithic hole from the serpent island of Gozo

Here Be Dragons

The Egyptian creator deity, Cneph, was represented as a serpent with an egg thrusting from his mouth, similar to the Ohio Serpent Mound and other places. From this egg proceeded the deity Ptah, or Phtha—the creative power and "father god" who is the same as the Indian Brahma. These Brahma have been related by scholars to the Jewish Essene community and also to Mithra I. Mithra was encircled by serpents and can be equated in many ways to Jesus, being a solar divinity and reborn on the 25th of December, like the sun. There is little wonder that a Persian god, such as Mithra, and a Judaic semi-deity, such as Jesus, would be linked when one understands that the folds of the ancient serpent cult were so all-encompassing that they encircled the globe like a Leviathan. We can even see elements of this when Jesus is equated to the Brazen Serpent of Moses when we are told to be wise as serpents and that he even shed his shroud or skin once crucified upon the cross. Incidentally, snakes are still, to this day, nailed to trees in certain parts of Africa as a sacrifice for our sins and for healing remedies.

And so we have circular monuments and serpent mounds associated with the egg, which from all the evidence simply gives us the conclusion that these were places of rebirth. One would push through the symbolic circle, or out of the egg, or slough off the old skin, but there is more evidence yet to be unearthed and which reveals this sloughing of the skin to be linked with these ancient sites.

The classical Greeks frequently depicted a serpent squeezing between two upright stones, which they called Petrae Ambrosiae (stone or rock ambrosia), noting that Ambrosia is the nectar and Elixir of the gods. According to the 19th century archaeologist, Bryant, Stonehenge was seen as amber stones, with nearby Amesbury—previously Ambrosbury—as proof. In this way, the healing abilities of the megalithic stones are attributed to the serpent. In fact, we do still find traces of this in many stories about dragons, who protect, serve, and heal those ancient people of the stones.

The antiquarian and stone circle-spotter extraordinaire William Stukely also found two other "serpent temples"—one at Shap in Westmorland and the other at Classerness in the island of Lewis.

Secret Societies: Gardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

Stukely thought that the Greek legend of Cadmus sowing dragons' teeth alluded to his building a serpentine temple. Cadmus was turned into a serpent (or followed the serpent cult), and stone temples were erected in his and Harmonia's honor. Pausanius helps us along and points out that "In the road between Thebes and Gilsas, you may see a place encircled by select stones, which the Thebans call The Serpent's Head." 4 So, ancient tales may be clues to the real identities of the serpents and dragons of fable, and these real identities may in fact be literal places and monuments. Places where, perhaps, snakes were held in high esteem by the ancient Ophites or serpent worshippers of the world.

There are many more texts mentioning dragons and serpents, such as the one that Taxiles showed to Alexander the Great, which was sacred to Dionysus. It was said to be of enormous size, walled around, and resided in a low, deep place. It is my conjecture that such places, similar to Stonehenge, were "portals" or "gateways" to the "land of the serpents"—places of mystery and rebirth, where offerings and sacrifices must be made to the serpent benefactor.

Indeed, there is plenty of evidence now from people such as Paul Devereux that shows such places were also great resonance boosters. That is, they amplified sound in peculiar ways, thus creating the booming sound of the dragon. Such scholars even go as far as saying that the resonance creates spiral and serpent wavelike shapes from the dust and smoke, as the sound wave carries the particles along its serpentine path. The serpent could truly have been seen to rise and heard to roar.

However, most people are not aware that similar mounds and monuments also appear elsewhere and often associated with the serpent or dragon in similar ways.

In 1871, at the meeting of the British Association in Edinburgh, a certain Mr. Phene gave an account of his discovery in Argyllshire of a similar mound, "several hundred feet long, 15 feet high, and 30 feet broad."

The tail tapered away, and a circular cairn, which he presumed to be the solar disk above the head of the "Egyptian uraeus," surmounted the head.

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Here Be Dragons

This amazingly is not the only instance of huge serpentine images upon the ground. In the Zend Avesta of the Zoroastrians, one of the heroes takes a rest on what he thinks is a bank—only to find out that it was a green snake!

Iphicrates related that in Mauritania "there were dragons of such extent that grass grew up on their backs," thus showing the highly likely chance that tales of massive dragons in far-off lands could easily be serpent mounds.

Other instances of serpent mounds, however, are to be found mentioned by Strabo (Lib xv. P. 1022), in which two dragons are said to have resided in the mountains of India, one 80 cubits long and the other 140. Posidonius also tells of one in Syria, which was so large that horse riders on either side could not see each other. Each "scale" was as big as a shield, so that a man "might ride into his mouth." Bryant concurs with the belief that these must be ruins of Ophite temples.

And for what were these temples used?

In ancient Egyptian papyri and in the Mesoamerican codex borgia, there are instances or tales of the king entering the serpent and going through it in order to be resurrected—much like those I find in the myth of Osiris. This is exactly the same process that lodges and temples today are used for in modern secret societies. In Freemasonic rituals, the initiate must be hung, placed in a coffin, and then called forth like Lazarus in the Bible. In my own ritual, I was ritually slaughtered and then brought back to life by the symbolic energy of the snake.

A book said to have been written by Votan (Quetzalcoatl) in the language of the Quiches and thought to have been in the possession of Nunez de la Vega, the Bishop of Chiapas, also has some revealing elements. So revealing that the Bishop tried to burn it. Votan says he left Valum Chivim 5 and came to the New World to apportion land among seven families who came with him and were said to be culebra or of "serpent origin." Passing the "land of 13 snakes" he arrived in Valum Votan, founding the city of Nachan (City of Snakes), thought to be modern day Palenque, possibly around 15 B.C. or even earlier. Votan is said to have made four trips to the east and even to have visited Solomon.

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

An interesting aspect of serpent mounds is the description of a subterranean passage, which is said to terminate at the root of "heaven." This was called a "snake's hole" and Votan was only allowed in because he was the son of a snake. Surely this can only mean that Votan was an initiate in the serpent cult and that there was a ritualized serpent mound or pyramid which led to snake heaven or Patala.

The Fenian heroes of ancient Ireland are recorded orally in song, and one of them, Fionn, was their "dragon slayer." One of the legends tells us that:

It resembles a great mound, its jaws were yawning wide;

There might lie concealed, though great its fury,

A hundred champions in its eye-pits.

Taller in height than eight men,

Was its tail, which was erect above its back;

Thicker was the most slender part of its tail,

Than the forest oak which was sunk by the flood.

Fionn asked where this great monster had come from and was told, "From Greece, to demand battle from the Fenians." It seems that the serpent worshippers had come to Ireland from Greece, and had fought the ancient inhabitants, leaving behind such terror of them that they became symbolized as this great "dragon mound." Fionn, it is said, opened the side of the dragon and released the men, going on to kill it. It may be that there is a mixture of wartime fact built in with ritualistic truth in this legend. Emerging from the side of the dragon, as in other myths, gives new life.

The rituals of the secret societies date back thousands of years and have their origin, yet again, in the worship of the serpent. With the oncoming of orthodox Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, this serpent worship was eradicated and went underground— emerging it seems in the guise of secret societies. Here we have archaeological and textual evidence that the ancient mounds of the world were rebirthing places for these ancient cults that were wiped out, adapted, or swallowed up by the dominant cults (Christianity, and so on). Obviously the lodges and temples themselves would take on many more symbolic devices as time passed by—such as symbolism from the Temple of Solomon.

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Solomons Temple Revealed

In the last chapter, we discovered the serpent secret of the cult centers of our globe and their influence on the modern meeting places of religions and secret societies. Perhaps the most important of all influences on the most powerful secret society—the Freemasons—is the Temple of Solomon. But there is a deep psychology held within the walls of this temple, one that has permeated secret societies for millennia. It's time to take a look at this secret.

There is a journey that we all must take. It is called life. There is no escaping this journey. We cannot pay somebody to take it for us or to take the pain and sorrow that frequents our path. Without our mother and father there would be no help at all from the very start. We would be helpless and we would, in all likelihood, die.

We are born with no knowledge whatsoever other than some minor genetic memories, and many of us simply follow the patterns that life, evolution, and our peers throw at us. We subconsciously assume we must do as our forefathers; we must follow in their footsteps; we must marry, have children, get a job, and step onto the roller-coaster of commercialism and the greed-oriented rat race we know as capitalism or even communism. There is seemingly no way out of this life, and anyway, most of us are enthused by the chase—for we truly know no different.

Secret Societies: Gardiners Forbidden Knowledge

All of this is perfectly natural. We are, after all, apes with less hair. We strive to be the alpha male and female; to be top dog; to fit in with the society or "tribe" that surrounds us and support the same football team as our friends. And often that society is just a larger version of our selves; it is created by groups of selves.

In the times gone by, our ancestors saw through all of this and recognized that there was another way. They discovered that in order for man to elevate himself above the level of the brown earth upon which he scrambled, he needed to alter his internal dialogue. Man needed to understand himself and the forces that drive him.

This unique understanding—that there could be a higher goal for mankind, whether collectively or individually—evolved into what we now know as Gnosticism. Of course, this is a massive oversimplification and we should always take into account the mystics—those who have experienced what we would call otherworldly emotions or visions. Also, regardless of popular perception, the Christians were not the only Gnostics and mystics. Gnostic comes from the Greek word gignoskein meaning, simply, to know. It was applied to "one sect of so-called philosopher's in the first ages of Christianity. ,n

However, the term is now being used more loosely, and I personally see the term slightly differently than others, and probably in a controversial light.

To me, the Greek term implies all-knowledge. This is a kind of knowledge gained much like plugging ones mind into the World Wide Web and being able to download every single piece of data in an instant. In the same way, the true Gnostic, much like the mystic, could supposedly understand all things in a unique way. Whether this is the mind tapping into the collective unconscious, the Akashic records, or any other name given to the process, does not matter for the purpose of this chapter; the fact remains, it was believed. And because of this belief, physical manifestations of the internal belief system emerged the world over. In this way, the temples of man were exactly that—Temples of Man.

Gnosis, then, means knowledge of the most esoteric kind, and this is the story that has been hidden from our eyes for too long. This is the truth of the secret societies that we on the outside are supposedly too worldly to comprehend.

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The Temple

So, let us now try our best to comprehend the Temple of Solomon and, in doing so, let us walk upon holy ground, trodden only by the initiated.

In the years of my own searching, there were times when I would be found at the feet of the Magi, sitting and listening to the wise words of the Sufi, joining in the debate at a more enlightened Freemasonic Lodge. I was learning and viewing the process with an open ear and an open eye, and yet also balancing it all with the knowledge of modern science and reductionism. Both worlds, the one of the esoteric and the one of science, are useless apart—both are needed today if we are to truly understand.

So down to the facts about the Temple of Solomon. We are sadly lacking in any archaeological evidence, regardless of what you read on some literal fundamentalist Website. What we are told is that in the 10th century B.C., the wise King Solomon erected a great temple to the Lord. Unfortunately, if any of this is true, then we actually find that it was a temple that encompassed many Pagan religions.

According to Professor James Pritchard, in his book, Solomon and Sheba:

...the so-called cities of Megiddo, Gezer and Hazor, and Jerusalem itself were in reality more like villages....Within were relatively small public buildings and poorly constructed dwellings with clay floors. The objects reveal a material culture which, even by the standards of the ancient Near East, could not be judged sophisticated or luxurious....The 'magnificence' of the age of Solomon is parochial and decidedly lackluster, but the first book of Kings implies exactly the opposite. 2

In fact, and in the bright light of day, what we actually have (which most writers are afraid to say) is no evidence whatsoever for Solomon's Temple. We have no evidence for Solomon, other than these peculiar Biblical texts. Nor do we have any evidence for the Queen of Sheba, or any of the other characters involved. Instead, there is more depth than could ever be imagined, more meaning than we would dare to believe.

Secret Societies! Gardiners Forbidden Knowledge

In The Temple at Jerusalem: A Revelation, John Michell gives us an insight to the real meaning:

Legends of the Temple describe it as the instrument of a mystical, priestly science, a form of alchemy by which oppositely charged elements in the earth and atmosphere were brought together and ritually married. The product of their union was a spirit that blessed and sanctified the people of Israel.

How right Michell is. The Temple is an instrument of mystical and priestly science, or even magic. The secret unravels before our eyes the more we learn. You see the true Gnostic, the true disciple or perfect one, must be a man or woman of balance. He or she must unite the two sides of the mind—the male and female principles, as they are called. We are all both male and female, and the alchemists used this concept of balance and revealed it in their images of the Hermaphrodite (half man and half woman).

Solomon was no real man, and Sheba was no real woman. Instead they were symbols of this internal and often external process. The whole story of Solomon, Sheba, and the Temple, which is the perfectly formed body (both physical and spiritual) is the story of our own psyche. It is an esoteric truth, misunderstood in its exoteric form.

Hiram

Hiram was the son of a Jewish mother and a Phoenician father and is credited with the decoration of the Temple of Solomon. He was said to have been the "son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali.... He cast two bronze pillars" in 1 Kings 7:13-15.

We must also note something of interest found in 1 Kings 16:

Then he made two capitals of cast bronze, to set on top of the pillars. The height of one capital was 5 cubits; and the height of the other capital was five cubits. He made a lattice network, with wreaths of chainwork, for the capitals which were on top of the pillars: seven chains for one capital and seven for the other capital. (Masonic Bible, Collins)

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These pillars became known as Joachim, meaning "he establishes" and Boaz, which means "in him is strength," and these are now familiar to most modern Freemasons as central to their own lodge or temple. Copies of these can be clearly seen at the infamous Rosslyn Chapel, as we shall discover.

But what is interesting here is the original text about these pillars. Firstly, bronze is used for the capitals, just as bronze is used for the "Brazen Serpent" of Moses and is indicative of the fiery aspect of the serpent as one of the channels in the kundalini process. Their "heights" were 5 cubits, matching the five hooded cobras seen across India and atop many pillars, although the Bible calls them Lilies, which are symbols of balance anyway.

Leading up to these capitals were "wreaths" of "chainwork"— seven on each pillar. Strangely, these chains were "for the capitals," so we conclude that these seven leveled chains (coils) were pointing towards the head (capital) just as the serpents of the Kundalini do.

There are more real links between Hiram and the serpent. For instance, we noted previously that he was of the tribe of Naphtali. The standard of the tribe of Naphtali, according to Jewish tradition, is a serpent or basilisk, and this could have come from Egyptian origins, as Jewish tradition states that Naphtali was the brother of Joseph, chosen to represent the family to Pharaoh.

And now I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, Huram [Hiram] my master [father] craftsman, (the son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a man of Tyre), skilled to work in gold and silver, bronze and iron, stone and wood, purple and blue, fine linen and crimson, and to make any engraving and to accomplish any plan which may be given to him, with your skilful men and with the skilful men of my lord David your father. (2 Chronicles 2:13-14)

Here, Hiram is said to be a son of the tribe of Dan, which had an emblem—the serpent, this time with a horse.

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

Incredibly, there is also a hidden truth and repetitive pattern in this little statement about the real skills of this literary character. Follow this pattern:

Hiram is skilled in:

1. gold and silver.

2. bronze and iron.

3. stone and wood.

4. purple and blue.

5. fine linen and crimson.

6. making any engraving.

7. accomplishing any plan that may be given to him.

Note that there are seven "balanced" elements to the skill of the man who will build the Temple! This is a real clue to the Temple's secret indeed.

According to this book of Chronicles, Hiram was a cunning man (a word used for the serpent) endued with understanding, and skillful in the work of gold, silver, brass, stone, and timber. But he was also credited with certain tools, which could pierce stone. Stone, as I show in Gnosis, is symbolic of wisdom and foundation. Hiram's tool, therefore, pierced the veil or even the very root of wisdom.

According to the book of Kings, the Temple was built of stone (or wisdom) before it was brought to the site—something similar to a prefabricated building. It was said by tradition that neither hammer, nor axe, nor any tool of iron was used in the building. So how was it built? This in itself is a paradox, which can only be answered by the true secret of the Temple being revealed.

According to Rabbinical teaching, the prefabrication of the Temple was performed by the Shamir, a giant worm or serpent that could cut stones (incidentally, worm means serpent). Not dissimilar to Norse and Celtic beliefs in which Valhalla and Camelot were built with the fire of the dragon, and in China where building is aided by the serpent energy.

This is a universal concept as can be seen in India, where it was the serpentine-linked Nagas of fable who escaped their country and

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Do You Warrr to Know a Secret?

took the architectural wisdom abroad. The architect gods, such as Thoth of Egypt, are linked strongly with the serpent wisdom because they are linked with the building of "Temples of Wisdom" inside our selves.

The real you at the center

The Shamir, according to one legend, had even been placed in the hands of the Prince of the Sea, 3 which is symbolic of the Prince of Wisdom.

In essence, what we really have here is the Temple of Wisdom being built by the serpent, and that serpent is none other than that of, or similar to, the internal kundalini, later to be developed into the Kabbalah. This is a psychological training manual, a method of self-improvement, a way for society to become One, a multilayered method of getting closer to the deity that resides in each and every one of us, a deity that the ancients saw as being the same in each of us.

The whole process repeats again and again throughout the Bible. The Temple is reduced (like the alchemical method) and is remade. Then again and again, until finally the Christ is the temple tht is reduced (killed) and then rises again for the last time. And now, according to the texts, we can all meet with this Christ and we can all have the knowledge. We just need to understand that

Secret Socie+ies: Darditier s Forbidden Knowledge

the true Christ is all and in all. But this hasn't worked, has it? Man is still, even now in the 21st century, searching for answers, and so the temple is being reduced once again....

I say, we should all take a look at our own "temples" and knock them to the ground. We should then go about rebuilding them in a bigger and better way than before, just the way the Bible states. And more than that, we must keep on doing this until this world of ours has peace and all truly are equal before God....

But we need to beware. All this can sound very wonderful and enticing. In a way, I am playing a trick upon your mind in the same way that secret societies often play games of manipulation. There is truth in the previous statements for sure—but to gasp in awe at the power of the kundalini simply because ancient man found it "enlightening" would be foolish, as we shall now discover.

Secret Societies and \he Links \o \he EnllgM-eivmeTii"

One of the most profound enigmas of the existence of secret societies is and has always been why people join. Why do people find these groups so interesting? What is being sought?

There are the usual and obvious answers to these questions: We are all searching for enlightenment in our own way, and each person finds it in different ways—hence the need for so many kinds of secret organizations. This has been called a void that we need to somehow fill; an emptiness within each one of us that calls out for a higher being or state of consciousness. Some psychologists believe that this is an evolutionary aspect of our lives, that within us there is a constant urge to improve and a deep-rooted hope. This hope makes us strive for more and, thus, we become the strongest and fittest of the species—hence evolution.

But, there is a truth in this that has missed many. There is a void within us, quite literally. This void is the lack of the true enlightenment experience. There actually is a higher state of consciousness. If it were not so, then the feeling and emotions that drive people towards rediscovering it would not be so strong and so universal. It is not—and I have to state this each time—the kundalini, which is a troubled and yet beautiful human electro-biochemical reaction. To follow this ancient Hindu concept to the letter is, in the first instance, next to impossible because texts do not exist, and secondly it is highly dangerous and can

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easily lead to psychosis and other forms of mental problems. It is one aspect of the true inner wisdom, but not the only aspect.

Over the millennia, the secret societies, and, indeed, some religions of the globe, have attempted to bring us back to this state of consciousness, but they have, more often than not, utilized it for their own gain—power. How do we know this? A quick study of the secret societies of the globe will show that the enlightenment experience has been used in every single occasion to draw people in and keep them.

From as early as the 11th century, an enigmatic group known erroneously as the Assassins emerged in Persia. They take their name from Hashish (hashish-im, "hashish takers"), a trance inducing drug thought by many to help the leaders control the minds of the subverts. The name was originally an insult.

In one famous apocryphal statement of folklore, Hasan, son of Sabah, the Sheikh of the Mountains and leader of the Assassins said to an official of the emperor's court, "You see that devotee standing guard on yonder turret-top? Watch!"

The sheikh made a signal and immediately the devotee threw himself off the mountaintop precipice to his death. "I have 70,000 men and women throughout Asia, each one of them ready to do my bidding."

In the first instance, this is amazing control over the mind of another individual. In the second, it implies that the Assassins were much older than this early appearance, with 70,000 devotees cast throughout Asia. No society can set up that many devotees over night. It would take many years to cultivate this kind of following, and it would also take a lot of convincing—unless there were an easier method of control, that is!

As if to mimic or follow an older institution, the Assassins went through a cycle of initiation based upon seven levels. This relates entirely to the seven chakra points of initiation in the close-by Hindu tradition—a tradition based around the energy of the serpent. It was at the seventh level that the Assassins reached the "great secret," that all mankind and all of creation were one, and that everything was part of the whole. This great secret included being part of the whole and understanding its creative and destructive elements (order and chaos). The Ismaili (Assassin initiate) could

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Secret Societies and the Links to the Enlightment

therefore make use of this great power held within him. They firmly believed that the rest of mankind knew nothing of this power, with the exception of the other societies. The power came through the use of the drug hashish and clever ritualistic involvement— making the Ismaili feel part of a greater good, as a "chosen one"— a feeling Adolf Hitler would later use to gain control of the German people. There was, however, an eighth level that was slightly separate, and this taught that all religions and philosophies were false, and that the only thing that mattered was fulfillment of this greater power, which lay within. Contrary to popular belief, the Assassins were not just Muslims; they were not under any category that is currently known other than secret society. It was only later on in their existence that they had to turn to Islam as a means of survival, and even then they granted themselves special privileges that allowed them to alter religion at will.

The Assassins are (rightly) always linked to the Knights Templar. These groups had dealings with eachother and a mutual respect. There are even monetary dealings between the two groups. Could it be that the Templars understood this greater secret and brought this "Holy Grail" of enlightenment back to Europe with them? It appears so, as we saw in the tales of Arthur and Robin Hood.

The whole process certainly relates to the serpent energy or fire of the ancients around the world, which was related to the serpent cults I revealed in the Serpent Grail. But there is another piece of evidence that relates to this. The second Grand Master, Buzurg-Umid (Great Promise), situated himself at Alamut, otherwise known as the Viper's Nest. There are further links to the Templars in that Buzurg-Umid actually made a deal with King Baldwin II of Jerusalem, a man closely connected to the Templars. In 1129, the Templars and crusaders actually allied with the Assassins to take Damascus. This is an indication that the Assassins were not just Muslim and were even prepared to take on the cloak of Christianity, should it bring them further power.

The secret rituals of the Templars and the accusations made against them would relate entirely to the cult of the Assassins. The question has to be asked, did the Templars utilize the same mind-controlling techniques as the Assassins? There is evidence to suggest that the Templars, in connection with the Assassins,

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

actually understood the use of drugs, especially for the relief of pain. In his book Sex and Drugs, Robert Anton Wilson indicated his belief that the Templars used hashish, and learned the use from the Assassins. This is not an unreasonable assumption, given the links. There are links to be found in the Templar rituals and beliefs with much of the Middle Eastern religions. There is even Sufi influence, with the Golden Head of the Sufi being implicated as the Baphomet of the Templars. This Golden Head, as Idries Shah points out in The Sufis, was implicated as the "worship of a mysterious head [which] could well be a reference to the great work of transhumanization that takes place in the aspirant's own head." This was the idea that one's own humanity was transmuted into gold through the enlightenment experience and thus the secret of alchemy is revealed—virtual kundalini.

Also, the initiate ritual of the Sufi involved passing through a doorway of two pillars. This entrance symbolized the portal into a world of illumination, knowledge, and enlightenment. If it is true

The illuminated eye of god set within a triangle. A symbol used later by the Illuminati

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Secret Societies and ihe Links io the EnligMmeni

that the Freemasons emerged from a font of Templar knowledge, then this could be one of the origins of the twin pillars of the Mason guilds. It is also similar to the twin pillars that pilgrims to Mecca must pass through (Safa and Marwa).

Parsi (Persian Zoroastrianism) influence is also seen in the Kusti ritual. Each day they would tie a sacred cord around their waist. The fact that the Templars were accused of holding a ritual with a sacred cord closely resembling the practice of the Zoroastrian Kusti, indicates a tradition of knowledge going back through thousands of years.

These traditions can also be seen in that great Roman religion of Mithraism, in which the initiate was marked with the sign of the cross on the forehead. This was to signify the sun and the place of illumination, the very same as that of the Hindus, ancient Egyptians, and tribal Americans to name a few.

Much of this ancient and supposedly secret teaching was passed in what is known as Gnosticism. All Gnostics cannot be drawn into one bag, but there is a general theme—that of illumination and enlightenment. The methods are now familiar to us. Many believed that, through a frenzy, they could achieve the ultimate state, and others believed that, by fasting and mediation, they would be drawn closer to God. The results were the same: a deeper understanding of themselves and the belief that they were in touch with God. This ecstasy would invigorate, and, similar to being in a Nexus, the initiate would constantly want to reachieve this state, thus keeping him in the fold. The experience being so very real to the religious mind that they truly believed they were in communion with God. And this is why I constantly draw a line at the kundalini, because it has dangers that its proponents not only refuse to see, but can't see because of its very nature!

The various methods used to access this altered state are very ancient. The ritual abstinence from food was as old as man. Practiced in the rituals of Eleusis, of which Plato himself was a member, the initiate would undergo a prolonged period of fasting, followed by a period of waiting. This increased the sense of anticipation and heightened the mind, which would create the event in his mind before it actually occurred. No leader could ask for more. Eventually, the initiate was lead into the temple, where he enjoyed a ritualistic meal and, thus, great effects were produced in

Secret Societies: Gardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

the body with increased levels of sugar in the blood, the mind almost in a trance state. There was whirling like the dervish, sleep-inducing drinks, and play-acting by the great and seemingly powerful priests. Sacred objects and sacred words were then, at this point of heightened state, revealed. The age and breadth of this system of indoctrination can be seen in the closing words, "Cansha om pacsha," a Sanskrit term. Indeed, it is accepted by scholars that these rituals emerged in India from the ancient Brahmins. Strangely, these rituals also involved a sevenfold cord that marked the passing of the initiate.

As Aristotle wrote, "Those who are being initiated do not so much learn anything, as experience certain emotions, and are thrown into a special state of mind."

This "special state of mind" was a plasticity of the initiate that the priests could bend and manipulate to their own ends; just as the Old Man of the Mountain manipulated the Assassins. The initiate truly believed he or she had visited other worlds.

All these methods and means of manipulation were passed on through time into all manner of modern secret societies. In the High Priesthood of Thebes, a society first revealed in Germany in the 18th century, it was written of the initiate:

He was led to two high pillars between which stood a griffin driving a wheel before him. The pillars symbolised east and west, the griffin the sun and the wheel the four spokes of the four seasons. He was taught the use of the level and instructed in geometry and architecture. He received a rod, entwined by serpents and the password Heve (serpent), and was told the story of the fall of man. (Enquire Within, The Trial of the Serpent)

The symbols within this initiation are now obvious and ancient.

In the initiations and rituals of witches, similar themes are found. Whirling, dancing, and a general build-up to frenzy would bring the participant into a trance state—known today as catharsis. This was helped along with drugs, such as the "ointment" used by the witches to help them fly and which contained hyoscine. The leader would then guide them through a set-piece ritual of words and incantations leading to complete mind control. With

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such control, as in many religions, the participant would often give up his or her own family and friends. This is the origin of what we call in modern times a cult, and it can now be realized just how hard it is to break out of a cult.

This awakening of the mind through ecstasy is, on the one hand, a release from the norm and a breakthrough for the mind into a freedom state, but on the other hand it is a dangerous tool, used by many cults, secret societies, and mainstream religion to control and manipulate the masses for their own ends. It may be that some have nothing but good intentions at heart, but history has shown, repeatedly, that greed is all-powerful and can take the soul of many well-meant groups.

The lesson is, be careful in what and whom you believe.

Serpent Origins and Ike Real Origins oF Freemasonry

This mysticism is indeed the great Masonic Secret, the Supreme Initiation.... It is old as is this world. — La Trahison Spirituelle de la Freemason,

J. Marques-Rivere

So, at the root of the secret is an electrobiological and chemical reaction inside the mind often termed the kundalini. This we now know to be linked implicitly with the serpent from the internal process and vision, and therefore being spoken of as serpent power. But are there any real links to the world's biggest secret society— the Freemasons? It is clear that the serpent is, and has always been, a symbol of the Freemasons of which they have been perfectly proud. The question is: How many of its members realize what its all about?

Origins

Abraham, the Israelite father of mankind, and Hiram of the Freemasons, are one and the same. Both are based upon serpent worshippers with Indian Naga or serpent deity backgrounds. A grand statement, but one that I am not alone in making.

Flavius Josephus said in his History of the Jews:

These Jews are derived from the Indian philosophers; they are named by the Indians Calani.

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Megasthenes, sent to India by Seleucus Nicator, also said that the Jews were called "Kalani" and that they were an Indian tribe.

Clearchus of Soli said: "The Jews descend from the philosophers of India. The philosophers are called in India Calanians and in Syria Jews. The name of their capital is very difficult to pronounce. It is called Jerusalem."

If Abraham as the father of the Jewish race is therefore a legendary figure of India, then who is he, and did he exist at all? It's time to upset traditionalists.

The obvious person for an Indian Abraham is Brahma (A-Brahma) who just happens to have a consort and sister named Saraisvati 1 — which is amazingly similar to the name of the Biblical Abraham's wife, Sarai. Abraham is said to have learned his trade in Ur, which is very close to the Persian border—being en route to India.

It is also a fact that the name of Brahma spread throughout this entire area—so much so that the Persians even adopted him as one of their deities. So, the very area where Abraham is said to have learned his priestly trade is the very area that the Indian Brahma was being spread and worshipped. What more can we find within this area of the Chaldees?

The Chaldeans were called Kaul-Deva, and they were a priestly caste living in, among other places, Afghanistan, Kashmir, and Pakistan. (Kaul-Deva meaning the Shining Calani, hence these were enlightened Shining Ones, a group going back to ancient Sumeria and outlined in my book The Shining Ones.)

So Abraham/Brahma learned his trade among the Chaldeans, who were related to the Indian subcontinent and were the Shining priesthood or enlightened souls. In this respect, then "Abraham" was simply a title given to the high priest or lord of the sect of Brahma. But if, as in ancient Egypt, he needed to duplicate the life of the gods, then he, too, would have needed a wife/sister.

The fact that Saraisvati was both Brahma's consort and sister also relates to the Biblical account of Abraham.

But indeed she is truly my sister. She is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. (Genesis 20:12)

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Serpent Origins and the Real Origins of Freemasonry

This same pattern of hidden Gnosis would later become part of the Mary/Jesus myth. The complex twists and turns that modern writers such as Dan Brown in the Da Vinci Code seem to have to create to explain the seemingly peculiar nature of Jesus' relationship with Mary the Mother and Mary Magdalene, are really quite remarkable. It is simple.

In the same way that Sarai is Saraisvati, she is also Isis, the greatest of Egyptian goddesses. Mary too is a duplicate of Isis. You see, Isis was the consort of Osiris, hence the wife part. She was therefore the mother of Horus the Savior—hence the mother of god. But Horus was Osiris reincarnated, so Isis was also his sister. Mary the Mother, Mary Magdalene the lover/consort, and Mary of Bethany the sister are really and truly the hidden aspects of a much older Gnostic tradition that has no literal element at all! The three Marys are in reality three aspects of the one feminine principle—the feminine trinity.

Of course, we could find ourselves in trouble here, as nowhere does it state that Mary of Bethany was the sister of Jesus. However, it does state that Mary of Bethany was the sister of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead, or more pertinently was Jesus, raised from the dead.

You see, in Egyptian mythology it was the role of the son of god and savior, Horus, to raise his father, Osiris, from the dead and in a sense resurrect himself (as Horus was Osiris resurrected).

However, Lazarus and Osiris are distinctly different names and so cannot be related. Still, although there is much debate on the exact etymology, many believe that there is a proven link. How?

The ancient Egyptian designation for Osiris was Asar or Azar. Now, when the Egyptians spoke of their gods they indicated them with "the" and so we would have had "the Azar." This term "the" also meant lord or god, like the Greek word for God, The-os or Theos. One of the Hebrew terms for Lord was El and was applied to their many deities, such as El-Shaddai or El-ohim. So when the Hebraic writers included Osiris in their myths, they put him in as El-Azar—the Lord Osiris. This, in the later Latin translation, was changed to El-Azar-us. This use of the "us" was the way that masculine names ended in the Roman language. In fact, in Arabic,

Secre+ Societies: Eardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

Lazarus is still spelled El-Azir, missing the "us." So we now have El-Azar-us, which reduced further into Lazarus. In this way the Egyptian, or should we say much older mythos, became the literal truth of the biblical record.

Horus, therefore, raised "El-Azar-us" or "El-Osiris" from the dead, just as Christ was to raise "Lazarus." This story is an allegory of the sun god Osiris being reborn, but nevertheless gives us the remarkable fact that Mary of Bethany, as the sister of Lazarus, was in literary and esoteric reality, the sister of Jesus.

And so, as we find that Jesus and Mary were in reality based upon a much older Egyptian mythology, which itself stretches back even further in time to ancient Sumeria, we also find that the story of Abraham and Sarai is no different. In the Koran (6:75), we find that Abraham's father was called Azar (Osiris), and so Abraham was Horus, just as Jesus was Horus. Lo and behold, we also discover (Luke 16: 22-25) that Lazarus himself rested in the bosom of Abraham, just as Osiris, as the crippled god, rested in his resurrecting son's arms.

And it was this Abraham, this Brahma or Osiris, that is said to have spawned the very Children of Israel. Let's take a look at Abraham's sons and see if we can reveal the hidden serpent lineage or serpent secrets that we found elsewhere in The Serpent Grail.

Abraham's son Ishmael, by Hagar, his maidservant, also had children who lived in India, or Havilah (land of serpents), as it is in Genesis. Both famous sons of Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac, have names that revert back to the worship of that Hindu serpent deity Siva. 2

Ishmael is Ish-Maal in Hebrew, and in Sanskrit, Ish-Mahal means "Great Siva." Isaac is Ishaak in Hebrew, and Ishakhu in Sanskrit—which means "Friend of Siva." Most startling of all is the very name of Abraham himself, which could mean that Abraham was nothing other than a Naga King—Ab Ram actually means "exalted snake."

Hiram, the famous Freemasonic and biblical builder of temples, was Ahi-Ram, and it is time to take a look at this mythical character.

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Hiram and \\%e Temple

Hiram of Tyre was a member of the Tribe of Naphtali, which had a standard of a serpent or basilisk. He was also said to be a son of the Tribe of Dan, which had an emblem of the serpent and the horse. In The Woman's Encyclopaedia of Myths and Secrets, Barbara Walker points out:

Writers of the Old Testament disliked the Danites, whom they called serpents (Genesis 49:17). Nevertheless, they adopted Dani-El or Daniel, a Phoenician god of divination, and transformed him into a Hebrew prophet. His magic powers were like those of the Danites emanating from the Goddess Dana and her sacred serpents....Daniel was not a personal name but a title, like the Celtic one.

Here we have a distinct conclusion, that Daniel of the Bible is related to the very same Danu or Dana goddess of Celtic Europe, and that this goddess is conclusively related to serpents—in this case, the serpens astrological sign as worshipped by the Danites. We also have confirmation that the Jewish people collected their belief system from those around them. Thus far, as we have gathered, they have melded the beliefs of India, Egypt, and now Phoenicia into their own growing system.

According to the book of Chronicles, Hiram was skillful in the work of gold, silver, brass, timber, and, importantly, stone. According to the book of Kings, the Temple was prepared in stone before it was brought to the site—perhaps prefabricated somewhere else. It was said that neither hammer nor axe, nor any tool of iron was used in the building. So, how was it built?

Well, in Exodus, Moses is told to build an altar to the Lord without tools, lest he should pollute it, and it seems the same symbolism was utilized here in the building of the Temple. According to Rabbinical teaching, the prefabrication was performed by the Shamir, a giant worm or serpent that could cut stones. According to the Islamic accounts of Rashi and Maimonides, the Shamir was a living creature. This is hardly likely, unless we understand this creature to be ourselves. What is more likely is that the idea of the wisdom of the "worm" (which evolved from the word worm for serpent anyway) or snake,

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Shamir, was used in the construction of the symbolic Temple of man—a Gnostic belief. 3

It was fabled that serpent-linked Nagas escaped their country and took this deep and seemingly architectural wisdom abroad. This linking of the esoteric and underlying principles of self-illumination, manifested here in architectural symbolism, eventually gave rise to modern Freemasonry.

The "architect gods" such as Thoth or Hermes are linked strongly with the serpent wisdom, as we discovered in The Serpent Grail. Other references also link the Shamir to the snake, such as the Testament of Solomon, which calls it a "green stone," like the Emerald Tablet, 4 which obviously provides further evidence for the Shamir to have been serpent wisdom.

Returning to Hiram we find that the name Hir-Am actually means "exalted head of the people" (Hir = Head, exalted, Am = people)—and is closely related to Abraham (Ab Hir Am).

However, it also has another and more telling meaning.

Ahi-Ram actually means "exalted snake." So, in either meaning Hiram was the "exalted head" or "snake," both meanings being paramount to the discovery of the thread of the snake cult and religious underlying beliefs—the mixture of the opposites within one's own head as shown in the Serpent Grail.

Hiram was also believed by some (according to David Wood in his book, Genisis) to be descended from Cain via Tubal-Cain, who was said to be the only survivor of the "superior race" after the flood.

The race is supposed to be called Elohim (people of the "fiery snake") or the "Shining Ones," also known as the "serpent people." This tale is derived from a text known as E or Elohim from around 750 B.C., and also gives rise to the stories of the Dionysiac Architects—also linked with the Freemasons.

It is no wonder that the pillars of Hiram should be related closely to the worship of the snake. Rosslyn, and especially one of its mock temple pillars, is entwined with the symbolism of snakes, not just as a direct relation to the Norse myths of Yggdrassil, with its gnawing serpent, but as symbols of the religious power of the Gnostic serpent.

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Serpent Origins and -the Real Origins of Freemasonry

On the Secret Scroll discovered by Andrew Sinclair, one of the most important images is the sight of a large, coiled serpent beneath the Temple steps, with a crown, a pick, and a shovel, as if pointing towards the excavation of the Temple itself.

There is a legend that may back up Andrew Sinclair's findings:

This Oriental legend tells how the Queen of Sheba was attracted to Hiram and that King Solomon became jealous. So jealous, in fact, that he plotted the death of Hiram. Molten metal used in the casting of a "brazen sea" was going to be used to kill Hiram, but he was saved by the "spirit" of Tubal-Cain—his ancestor—who is linked with serpent worship. He was saved, by the serpent, from death. Hiram threw his "jewel" down a deep well, but was then killed by Solomon's assassins by a blow to the head. It was said that three masters later found the body and venerated it. The jewel was found and placed on a triangular altar, which Solomon then had erected in a secret vault beneath the Temple (Josephus, Antiquities Vlll, 3:4). What was the jewel of this builder, which caused so much veneration? Whatever it was, later crusader knights—under the guise of Knights Templar—were supposedly to dig furiously beneath the Temple to discover it. The Templars are believed to have dug for other items they (and others, such as St. Bernard) thought were located there—such as the Ark of the Covenant. It may be that even this is symbolic and Gnostic language—the eternal search for our own divinity.

Following the dubious excavations, both the Templars and the Cistercians under St. Bernard grew in immense wealth. Great building works were carried out across Europe—all hiding secret symbolism of the snake and all using the architectural skills discovered while on their travels in the Middle East. Greatest of all, however, is the symbolism that was brought back with them, which invaded European culture like a contagious virus, seeping into and onto its buildings and works of art and keeping alive an ancient tradition for us to one day rediscover.

The hollow and nonliteral Brazen Pillars of Hiram became the twin pillars of the later Masons—who, like Moses as the emergent serpent, emerged from the Templars. These pillars were said to be hollow and to contain secret manuscripts—which reminds us of the supposed discovery of ancient and secret manuscripts from

Secret Societies: Gardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

Rennes Le Chateau, also thought to have been found inside a pillar and made popular by The Da Vinci Code. In truth they do hold a secret, but not one that can be held in the hand.

Now it is time to take a look at another exterior source of the modern Freemasons to see if there are any parallel influences at play: the Dionysiac Architects we have just mentioned.

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Masonic symbol at Llanfairfechan, Wales

These are said by Masonic historians to be the prime originators of their guilds. A secretive group or secret society with doctrines said by Manly P. Hall (in Masonic, Hermetic, Quabbalistic & Rosicrucian Symbolical Philosophy) to be similar to the Freemasons. They are thought to have been great builders, reminiscent of the idea of the great architectural Nagas who escaped India.

It was supposedly this secret society, under Hiram Abiff, who built the Temple of Solomon and erected the great brass pillars now seen as Boaz and Joachim in Masonry. They were also known as the Roman Collegia and were said to have wandered around like the medieval Masons, building such fantastic places as the Temple of Diana at Ephesus (John Weisse, The Obelisk and Freemasonry).

Weisse also points out that the Collegia influenced the Islamic building efforts, which were later to become a turning point in

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Serpent Origins and ihe Real Origins of Freemasonry

Western European architecture after the crusades and possibly via the Collegia's influence over the Templars, amongst others.

These Collegia were also thought to have been known before the Romans in Greece and were said to have worshipped the serpentine Bacchus. Considering the Masonic fascination with the Druids, there is little wonder that the infamous historian and archaeologist William Stukely believed them to have been the builders of Stonehenge and other ancient monuments. Many Masonic writers love to associate themselves with the Druids and we find that they "had a high veneration for the Serpent. Their great god Hu, was typified by that reptile" (George Oliver, Signs and Symbols).

If it is true that the Dionysiac Architects and the Bacchus/ Dionysus-worshipping Greek and Roman Collegia, were among the originators of the Freemasons, then it is highly likely that they were linked also with the serpent-worshipping Druids who were also known as Adders or Snakes. They were all a later showing of the worldwide serpent cult—the same as those in India, Egypt, and elsewhere, who all had fantastic building skills and held secrets of the true and hidden Gnostic traditions. Today we can still see a remnant of this great architectural, serpent-worshipping and secretive cult in the Masons. As George Oliver points out, "The Serpent is universally esteemed a legitimate symbol of Freemasonry," and now we see its history is worldwide, and some would say justifiably kept alive within the initiated Freemasons.

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12

The Knights Templar

No book exploring the myriad myths and tales of secret societies can leave out the unbelievably popular Knights Templar. There are links between this medieval order of warrior monks and Muslims, Masons, and even heretics, so we need to get a grasp of their darker side.

Whether stars of the Disney film National Treasure or pawns of modern-day political and commercial propaganda, the Knights Templar have taken root as one of the world's leading mystery groups. But what is the truth? Did they really have a great secret? Did they really hide treasure? Were they really guardians of the Holy Bloodline? Let's take a look.

Supposedly a group of nine knights (debatable and highly unlikely) were taken from the ruling nobility in the region of France known as Champagne, collected themselves together in Jerusalem around 1118 a.d., and formed the now infamous Knights Templar. All of this cannot be totally proven from the texts—however, it is repeated so often that it becomes true. In all likelihood, they had been formed in France years before, although I have new evidence placing their creation further back in time than even I had ever imagined (see The Ark, the Shroud, and Mary).

They were pledged, it is said, to commit their lives and work to a strict code of rules and were simply ordained to ensure the safe passage of pilgrims to the Holy Land. The knights request this task of the first King Baldwin of Jerusalem, who refuses. He then dies under mysterious circumstances, to be replaced by

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Baldwin II, who almost immediately grants them this privilege. This is the same Baldwin who went on to deal directly with the Assassins.

For the next nine years (there's that number again) the knights excavate beneath the Temple of Solomon (which didn't ever exist) in complete secrecy, and the Grand Master returns to Europe, supposedly with secrets that have been hidden for hundreds of years. Very quickly, the knights achieve a special dispensation from the pope to allow them to charge interest on loans—indicating their swift path to wealth. Soon the great cathedral-building period arrives across Europe with the newfound architectural "secrets" discovered by the crusaders. This newfound knowledge may very well have come from some of the discoveries made by the Templars, especially when we consider that the man responsible for energizing the building program was none other than St. Bernard. Bernard gave the Order of the Knights Templar their rules and was related, by blood, to various members. He was also indicated in the propaganda of the Arthurian and Grail literature we have already learned so much about.

The Templars grew in wealth and power. Their land-holding and banking system made them one of the most powerful and feared groups in Europe. Virtually nobody could match their international strength. According to George F. Tull in Traces of the Templars, they were also "well placed to obtain relics," as they held the respect of nobility and had many strategically placed premises across the Holy Land.

Near Loughton-on-Sea in England there are several Templar connected sites. The temple here, Tull continues, was "well provided with liturgical books, plate and vessels of silver, silver gilt, ivory and crystal, vestments, frontals and altar cloths. Among the relics kept there were two crosses containing fragments of the True Cross and a relic of the Holy Blood," whatever that might have been—it was not a bloodline. Tull also tells us of how some of these relics entered Britain:

Sometimes the hips returned with more specialized cargo, as when in 1247 Br. William de Sonnac, Master of the temple in Jerusalem, sent a distinguished Knight Templar to bring to England and present to King Henry III 'a portion of the Blood of our Lord,

The Knights Templar

which He shed on the Cross for the salvation of the world, enclosed in a handsome crystalline vessel.' The relic was authenticated under seal by the Patriarch of Jerusalem, the bishops, abbots and nobles of the Holy Land.

In Surrey, the Templars held land known then as Temple Elfold with 192 acres of arable land. Here again, in 1308 there was mention of a grail and a chalice. It is obvious that part of the wealth of the Templars came from the propaganda tools of the medieval reliquary business, proving their business acumen and their ability to root out those tools. They were also instrumental in spreading the cult of St. George, especially when we consider that they knew of his shrine in Lydda.

But in the early 14th century, King Philip of France organized their downfall, and the supposed secrets and wealth of the Templars disappear.

At their trials, the Templars were not only accused of worshipping the sacred head, but also the veneration of the serpent. As Andrew Sinclair points out in The Secret Scroll, another Templar emblem was the foliated staff of Moses, the very same staff that turned into a serpent and was emblematic of the serpent religious cult and healing.

The Rosslyn Missal, written by Irish monks in the 12th century, shows Templar crosses with great dragons and sun discs. Upon the Secret Scroll itself is the symbol of the 12 tribes of Israel, the breastplate of Aaron (whose serpent staff is said to be in the Ark) with 12 squares signifying the 12 tribes surmounted by a serpent. The serpent rules the tribes: "...the Serpent as a symbol obtained a prominent place in all the ancient initiations and religions. Among the Egyptians, it was a symbol of Divine Wisdom." (The Secret Scroll, Andrew Sinclair, which of course has been dated by scholars to the 16th or even 18th century). Many people believe that quite a few of the Templars and their secrets escaped to Scotland, and the dawning of a new age of Freemasonry emerged in later years—thought to be directly from the Templars.

In the year 1314, King Edward of England invaded Scotland, hoping to bring an end to the border battles. Meeting the Scottish army at Bannock Burn, he was surprised by a force of well-trained

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

men fighting for the Scots. The tide turned and Scotland achieved independence, if only for three years. The standard history has it that these well-trained men that turned the tide against the well-trained English army were nothing more than camp followers and servants. Many, though, now believe that these were the famous Knights Templar, who had taken root in Scotland and hidden away from Catholic tyranny. Strangely, immediately after the battle, Robert the Bruce, the new Scottish king, rewards the Sinclair family with lands near Edinburgh and Pentland, the very same lands associated with hundreds of Templar graves, sites, symbols, and much more, such as Balantrodoch (a temple).

An indication of the popular liking for the Templars is shown in the Peasant's Revolt of Wylam Tyler in a.d. 1381, when a mob marched in protest of the oppressive taxes placed upon them. Strangely, they did not harm the old Templar buildings, but turned their attentions on those of the Catholic Church. In one instance, they actually carried things out of a Templar church in London to burn the items in the street, rather than damage the building. It may be that this uprising was a natural incident, or it may be that it was inspired by the actions of a hidden and now secret society of the Templars—hidden because of the new Catholic hatred towards them. If it is the case that the Templars did indeed inspire this revolt, then, even though they were not successful, they tried again 100 years later, and forced the Reformation. It was around this period (15th century) that the first records of Scottish and York Masonic meetings appear.

Let's take a rather sideways look at the history and symbolism of the Templars.

There are some strange links between Sumerian iconography and Templar symbolism that need to be voiced. The most obvious Templar imagery is that of the two poor knights seated upon a horse, which is very similar to the idea and concept of two riders seen in ancient Sumeria. This was purely a tactical device in warfare—although there may be some truth in believing that it has origin in the "balance" hypothesis of the "twins." The Templar cross is equally seen in many Sumerian images normally associated with an upturned crescent moon. The Fleur de Lys is also a common image, as well as bees, which were common also to the Merovingians. The pentagram is also seen in the images of both, and symbolized the essence of the Merovingians as the "Shining Ones." *^ 132

The Knights Templar

Another symbol seen in various forms from Sumeria to France is the Abraxus—a figure with snakes for legs—a symbol used for gods such as Oannes, and, not surprisingly, this later became the symbol of the Grand Master of the Templar Order. What could this mean? That the head of the Order of the Templars saw himself as the chief of the serpents? And what was another name for the head serpent? Pendragon! In essence, the Master of the Templars was therefore not only by literary means including the Templars as the knights who would protect the Grail, but also himself as Arthur and vice versa.

In conjunction with the fact that the Templars also used the serpent symbol of eternity and immortality (the snake eating its own tail), we have a serpent secret being held by the very highest of Christian guardians.

The Cross of Lorraine, a symbol used by the Templars before their usual "Maltese"-style cross, is seen in Sumeria as a symbol for kingship. These influences must have been picked up while the Templars were in the Middle East and utilized later on. We know that they used the sign, because the trials in the early 1300s had the prisoners etching the symbol into the cell walls. What other ancient secrets did they collect?

An article by Boyd Rice titled "The Cross of Lorraine: Emblem of the Royal Secret" mentions that the Cross of Lorraine, apart from being a symbol of poison, was the emblem of heraldry for Rene D'Anjou, said by Charles Peguy to represent the arms of both Christ and Satan and the blood of both. It is also said to incorporate the symbol phi or the Golden Ratio of Sacred Geometry—so very important to the Masons. Rene d'Anjou was keenly aware of and interested in many things occult. He led a search for new (old) hermetic texts. The Cross of Lorraine was taken on by Rene, and, subsequently, by Marie de Guise, the wife of James Stuart V (parents of Mary Queen of Scots), for its occult symbolism. This occult symbolism showed the cross to be representative of poison. Proof of this meaning comes also from the fact that it became an icon used by chemists (originally alchemists) on the bottles of poisonous substances. The idea is hidden in the duality. Why would mon-archs and Templars use a sign for poison, if that poison did not have an opposite side? That of cure! Later on in the early 20th century, Aleister Crowley, the arch Magus and self-proclaimed

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British Alchemist, would assign this very same symbol as the Sigil of Baphomet—the Templars' own icon of adoration. The Cross of Lorraine is also thought to be a sign of secrets; a sign of the Angelic Race, which came down and posited wisdom and the secrets of immortality upon the Royal Bloodline. According to Boyd Rice it is "a sigil of that Royal Secret, the doctrine of the Forgotten Ones." And for this reason it seems peculiar that in the 1940s Charles de Gaulle should make it the official symbol of the French Resistance. Of course we now know that these "angelic" beings were Elohim/Shining Ones or Watchers, and that the underground stream of knowledge from these, right up to the medieval period and probably beyond, is derived from Sumeria.

Baphome+

This mysterious object was said to have been venerated by the Templars and to have been written about extensively for the past 30 years. It was thought to be a skull, by some.

One possible explanation for the origin of the word could strangely be found in the deserts of Yemen. The people who live here are called the Al-Mahara, and they have developed many ways of combating snake poison. The special snake priests are called Raaboot men, and they are said to have learned the secret from father to son. Their legends state that they have immunity from snakebites.

If somebody is bitten, then a Raaboot man is called upon, who then sits by the patient, along with several others who then chant in a monotone voice, "Bahamoot, Bahamoot." The poison is then vomited up or passed out of the body in the other direction. The Raaboot man then leaves. Again here, as I have pointed out before, the snake is said to have a jewel in its head, indicative of the enlightenment aspect.

Is it not possible that Bahamoot, as a chant for the curing of snakebites, could have made its way through the various cultures and found itself as a word for the "head serpent?"— The same "head serpent" that the Templars worshipped?

If nothing else, then the etymology of these two related items is so similar that it again shows, in the language of the serpent cult, a worldwide spread.

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The Knights Templar

Friday the 13th, October 1307, was a terrible day for the Knights Templar as King Philip IV's men descended upon all of the Order's French holdings, seizing property and arresting each of its members. Why? Simply because Philip owed them huge amounts of money and had no way of paying them back. To add to this he had hoped that the infamous Templar treasure would be his.

With the help of his puppet, Pope Clement V, the French king tortured the knights to discover their secrets. Finally, to justify his action, the knights were accused of heresy, homosexual practices, necromancy, and conducting bizarre rituals such as desecrating the cross—as if to show their lack of faith in this Christian icon. This was, however, a method of initiation and not a heretical act.

The most unusual and perplexing evidence they came across was the worship of this idol called Baphomet. This strange "thing"— although sometimes referred to as a "cat" or "goat"—was generally seen as a "severed head." In the Magic of Obelisks, Peter Tompkins says:

Public indignation was aroused...the Templar symbol of Gnostic rites based on phallic worship and the power of directed will. The androgynous figure with a goat's beard and cloven hooves is linked to the horned god of antiquity, the goat of Mendes.

The list of charges used by the Inquisition in 1308 reads:

Item, that in each province they had idols, namely

heads.

Item, that they adored these idols or that idol, and

especially in their great chapters and assemblies.

Item, that they venerated (them)

Item, that they venerated them as God.

Item, that they venerated them as their Savior.

Item, that they said that the head could save them.

Item, that it could make riches.

Item, that it could make the trees flower.

Item, that it made the land germinate.

Item, that they surrounded or touched each head of

the aforesaid idol with small cords, which they wore

around themselves next to the shirt or the flesh.

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Some said it was a man's head, but others a woman's head. Some said that it was bearded, others nonbearded. Some presumed that it was made from glass and that it had two faces. This general mixing of ideas shows where the idea of the head could have come from. That it was a man's head or a woman's, indicates its "dual nature"—and much like the ancient Celtic heads, it would incline me to the opinion that it emerged from part of the supposed ancient head cult.

The Celts, it is said, believed, as did the Hindus, that the soul resided in the head. They would decapitate their enemies and keep their heads as talismans. Probably the best-known head in Celtic lore is that of Bran the Blessed, which was buried outside London— some say in Tower Hill—facing towards France. It was put there to see off the plague and disease and to ensure that the land was fertile—the same powers that were attributed to the "Green Man."

"Bearded" and "nonbearded" simply indicates again the dual nature, as does the idea that it was "two-faced," like the god Janus. It was apparently called Caput 58 (Caput meaning "Head"), indicating that there may have been possibly hundreds of them. There are also strong links with Islam at this time; links that the Templars should probably not have made in their supposedly Christian world.

It is also said that the name Baphomet was derived from Mahomet—an Old French corruption of the name of the prophet Mohammed. Others claim that it comes from the Arabic word abufihamet, which means "Father of Understanding."

In all likelihood, though, Baphomet comes from baphe meaning to submerge and mete meaning wisdom. The Baphoment being a device for the Gnostic tradition or belief of being "submerged in wisdom," is associated with the concept of the Sophia or wisdom goddess.

The Symbol oF +Re Cross

We now turn to the cross, for there is great depth to its history and mythology that may well reveal more secrets of the Freemasons and Templars.

Today the world is going mad for all things Knights Templar. They have never been so popular. Everywhere you turn there's a

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The KnigMs Templar

new book, poster, T-shirt, and even mug with their infamous red cross on a white background. But this wasn't their only symbol, and I discovered that there was even greater truth to be found behind this enigmatic imagery and, believe it or not, it had nothing at all to do with Dan Brown.

I begin my quest with a familiar symbol to many people: the ankh. Today there are millions of people walking around with this unique and extremely important symbol on chains around their necks, and it is deeply embedded in the secret societies of the world, including the Freemasons, Rosicrucians, and many more. Even Christians adorn themselves with the image, thinking it to be a normal cross. And yet the significance of the symbolism implied by this seemingly unobtrusive little object is very profound.

This enigmatic symbol of Egypt represents "eternal life" and was often found in the names of Pharaohs such as the infamous Tut-ankh-amun. The symbol is often depicted being held by a god to a Pharaoh, giving him life, or held out by a Pharaoh to his people, giving them life—this basically set aside the immortals, from the mortals, for anyone wearing or carrying the ankh had gained or hoped to gain immortality. Those holding the ankh were the great magicians, the ones capable of altering reality. They had the power of the Otherworld through the device, which symbolized

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Author at a Templar castle in Portugal

Secret Societies: Gardiners Forbidden Knowledge

the access to the Otherworld. So, what elements of this ankh give it this special power?

The ankh is technically known as the Crux Ansata. It is a simple T-cross, surmounted by an oval—called the Ru. The Ru is often seen as the portal or gateway to another dimension such as heaven—in essence, the Otherworld. The ankh therefore becomes the symbol of transition from one plane to another. It outlived Egyptian domination and was widely used by the Christians as their first cross, but in this symbol holds a clue to the secret of the serpent.

One character intricately linked with the ankh, and specifically the Tau cross, is Thoth or Taautus—a character no different from the alchemists' and Greeks' Hermes or the biblical Enoch, both of whom were transported to other worlds in ways similar to modern altered states of consciousness, and both of whom are spoken of again and again by the secret societies.

Amazingly, Thoth was said, by Eusebius, to be the originator of serpent worship in Phoenicia, and this will prove to be of worth. Sanchoniathon called him a god and says that he made the first image of Coelus 1 and invented hieroglyphs. This links him with Hermes, whom I mentioned previously. Thoth also consecrated the linked species of dragons and serpents; and the Phoenicians and Egyptians followed him in this superstition.

This Thoth could very well be a memory of the first group who originated the worship of the serpent after the flood or the end of the last ice age approximately 12,000 years ago. Thoth was deified after his death (a time that nobody knows, if he existed) and given the title "the god of health" or "healing." He was the prototype for the serpent-linked healer, Aesculapius, and identified with Mercury, who bore the serpent-entwined caduceus: All healers, all wise, all teachers, all saviors, and all associated with the serpent for their powers. Indeed, it was as the healing god that Thoth was symbolized as the serpent—he was normally represented with the head of an ibis and baboon.

The letter or symbol "Tau" is the first letter of Taautus, Tammuz, and Thoth, and is thought to be the "Mark of Cain," who was called the "son of serpents." In many respects, it is also linked with the

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ancient swastika, so well-known to us now from Nazi imagery. We shall soon discover that the Nazis themselves began life as a secret society.

Swastika

The ancient symbol of the swastika is simply a stylized spiral, as can be shown from the many depictions across the world of swastikas made up of spirals and snakes. It also shows up in the spiral fashions of the labyrinths and mazes. The word labyrinth comes directly from the ancient Minoan Snake Goddess culture of Crete, where the swastika was used as a symbol of the labyrinth and is linked etymologically with the "double headed axe"—which is none other than the Tau cross. Similar labyrinthine swastikas have been found in the ancient city of Harappa from 2000 b.c. As the labyrinth is viewed as a womb of the Mother Goddess, and a symbol of the snake, there is little wonder that these two symbols became fused. However, labyrinths were also seen as places of ancient serpent initiation. In ancient Egypt, the labyrinth was synonymous with what was called the Amenti—the snake-like path taken by the dead to journey from death to resurrection. It was Isis, the serpent queen of heaven, who was to guide the souls through the twists of the Amenti. The path towards the center leads towards treasure.

The snake adorning Athene in ancient Greece is shown with a swastika skirt. The same is true of Astarte or Asherah and Artemis. There is Samarran pottery dating from 5000-4000 B.C. from Mesopotamia showing a female and swastika, on which the female's hair swirls with Medusa-type serpents. The swastika is also shown as two serpents crossing each other.

In Norse myth, the hammer of Thor, 2 Mjollnir, is closely connected with the swastika and is found to be a prominent motif in Scandinavian art from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age. It is found on swords and Anglo-Saxon cremation urns and on numerous Viking items. It was seen as a protector against thieves, reminiscent of the fact that serpents were known to guard treasure. As Thor's hammer was also seen as a Tau cross, it is certainly related to the secrets of the serpent. It was used by Thor to lop off the head of the sacred ox, which he used as bait to catch the Midgard

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Serpent, which encircled the globe in the symbol of the Ouroboros, eating its own tail. This was Thor offering a head as sacrifice to the serpent to try to gain immortality in the mead—the drink of the gods. He was using the serpent to catch the serpent. It was the cessation of the constant cycling of the Midgard Serpent that Thor attempted and, in this way, he beat time itself.

Thor's aim was to gain a cauldron big enough to take the mead for the immortals, and he needed to prove his worth by fishing for the serpent. He had power over the serpent as the slayer with the swastika or Tau cross. There is evidence to prove that the myths of these Scandinavians and the Hindus are related, as the story of Thor and the Midgard Serpent closely resemble the battle between Indra and Vritra, showing a common origin.

Vritra is the great serpent, which lies at the source of two rivers (the positive and negative, or male and female), as the Midgard Serpent lies beneath the sea (of the mind). Indra slits open the belly of the serpent to release the waters and therefore fertility back to the land. Both gods (Indra and Thor) are related to the weather, both are warrior gods with a thunderbolt as a weapon, and both slay the dragon. The swastika of the serpent is a common motif in both Hindu and Scandinavian cultures. Eventually, the Christians steal both Pagan myths and place St. Michael and St. George in their place—both having the red serpent cross to replace the swastika.

The cross is also found in the legends of Thoth or Taautus, who was said to have symbolized the four elements with a simple cross, which originated from the oldest Phoenician alphabet as the curling serpent. Indeed Philo adds that the Phoenician letters "are those formed by means of serpents...and adored them as the supreme gods, the rulers of the universe." If Thoth, Hermes, and even Enoch are the supposed inventors of the art of writing, then there is little wonder that they are so closely linked with the serpent.

Victoria de Bunsen in the 19th century thought, "the forms and movements of serpents were employed in the invention of the oldest letters, which represent gods." This symbol of the four elements was altered slightly and became the Egyptian Taut, the same as the Greek Tau, which is where we get the name Tau cross from—a simple T.

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The T or Tau cross also gives its name to the bull in the astrological sign of Taurus—note here the two elements of the Tau and the Ru being brought together. The Druids (or "adders," after the snake) venerated the tree and the snake by scrawling the Tau cross into tree bark.

In the Middle Ages, the Tau cross was used in amulets to protect the wearer against disease.

Among the modern Freemasons the Tau has many meanings. Some say that it stands for Templus Hierosolyma or the Temple of Jerusalem. Others say that it signifies hidden treasure or means Clavis ad Thesaurum, "A key to treasure" or Theca ubi res pretiosa, "A place where the precious thing is concealed."

It is especially important in Royal Arch Masonry where it becomes the "Companions Jewel": a serpent as a circle above the cross bar in place of the Ru and forming the ankh with the Hebrew word for "serpent" engraved on the upright, and also including the Triple Tau—a symbol for hidden treasure.

It was also the symbol for St. Anthony—later to become the symbol for the Knights Templar of St. Anthony of Leith in Scotland. St. Anthony lived in the 4th century a.d. and is credited with establishing Monasticism in Egypt, and the story goes that he sold all his possessions after hearing from the Lord and marched off into the wilderness to become a hermit. On his travels, he learned much from various sages in Egypt and grew for himself a large following. He was sorely tempted by the devil in the form of "creeping things" and serpents. In one episode, he follows a trail of gold to a temple, which is infested with serpents, and takes up residence, needing little food for sustenance other than bread and water. He is said to have lived 105 years, and due to this longevity he is credited with protective powers.

The Order of the Hospitalers of St. Anthony, who would later take much of the Templar wealth, brought many of Anthony's relics to France in the 11th century. Previously they were said to have been secretly deposited somewhere in Egypt just after his death and then later to have found their way to Alexandria. All of this is a symbolic representation of the truth. The truth, in fact, is that the secrets of these stories found their way to Alexandria, which was a mixing bowl of the occult, esoteric, Gnostics and

Secret Socie+ies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

mystical world, and from there it spread into Europe via such movements as the Templars, Rosicrucians, and later the Freemasons— hence the reason for finding the symbolism in the "Companions Jewel."

The Taut or Tau symbolizes the four creating elements of the universe. It is the center of all this creation, it is the spark in the cycle, the very center of all. Next, the symbol of the solar-serpent was added: a simple circle or the oval Ru. This loop above the T-cross created the ankh, the symbol of eternity. The snake in a circle eating its own tale is symbolic of the sun and immortality.

Eventually, the symbol of the moon was added to this, turning it into the sign for Hermes or Mercury and showing the Caduceus/ serpent origin. It is no wonder that this, the most perfect and simple of symbolic devices, became the symbol of the early Christians. It is also no wonder that, even though there were no cross-beam crucifixions, Christ was nevertheless symbolically crucified on a symbol of eternal life, a symbol of the serpent.

This symbol became the mark or sign that would set the believer aside for saving. In Ezekiel, this is the mark that God will know, the mark on the forehead. As Deane points out, the Ezekiel passage (9:4) should read, "set a Tau upon their foreheads" or "mark with the letter Tau the foreheads." The early Christians baptized with the term "crucis thaumate notare." 3 They baptized with the symbol of the snake.

Is this the original mark of Cain, which we have found elsewhere, to be of the serpent tribe?

The idea of this sign or mark is widespread once discovered. In Job 31:35, we read in our modern King James Bibles "I sign now my defence—let the Almighty answer me," which should properly read, "Behold, here is my Tau, let the Almighty answer me." He then goes on to say, "Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, and bind it as a crown to me."

This remarkable idea of wearing the Tau cross on the shoulder as a sign would later become part and parcel of the crusader Templars' markings. Also, the Merovingians (said by some to be descended from Jesus and a sea serpent or fish god—the Quinotaur or Quino-Tau-r) were supposedly born with a red cross between their shoulder blades. The Tau cross is also strangely used by those

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practicing sacred geometry as a "marker" for buried treasure, whether physical or spiritual.

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Sacred geometry at play upon this Masonic tomb in St. Peters, Rome

This buried treasure is truly the center, the point in our minds and hearts where we find the original self. This original center (heart means center) was seen to be connected to the Universal Mind, and only by accessing this center of ourselves could we access the Universal Mind or God. This in turn stops time, we become one with all, and we believe we are immortal. The Tau marks this place, either on the forehead or in the chest (between the shoulders), revealing to others those who can access the point in time where God resides. The word temple from whence Templar derives has another meaning: tempos simply means "time." The true temple is that place that has power over the cycling energy of the serpent. The true temple, like the one on our brow, is within us.

The Da Vinci Code Fiasco

We have spoken much of the Grail in this book because it is the goal or quest of the individual. For this reason it is seen as central to the symbols of the secret societies. There has recently been a lot of excitement about the Grail—a cyclical phenomena in humanity for the past 2,000 years. There are huge implications today with the Grail being a secret of various secret societies and I want to investigate this before we move on.

One question regarding the Holy Grail that the early medieval writers asked was "whom does it serve?" Well, let's have a look at the current Grail world and see if it is serving us—or are we serving it? We shall also discover just who it is behind this fiasco that has been manipulating the story from the very earliest of times.

Very briefly and for those among us who have been on the planet Sanity for the last few years, the Da Vinci Code is a fiction based around a man who discovers a code that reveals the true identity of the Holy Grail to be nothing more than the very bloodline of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene.

Unfortunately the author of this work, Dan Brown, claimed his now infamous book to be based upon real factual organizations and events. This could not be farther from the truth.

Let's take it apart.

Priory oF Sum

This supposedly ancient and enigmatic group allegedly once had Leonardo da Vinci himself as a Grand Master, not to mention

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several other notables such as Nicolas Flamel and Isaac Newton. However, there is no truth in it at all. Sion was the name of a hill nearby the residences of Pierre Plantard and Gerade de Sede— the two original creators of the Priory of Sion hoax.

The documents of the Priory secreted in the Biblioteque Nationale in Paris have been proven to be forgeries. In fact, the only truthful copies of anything for Mr. Plantard in the Paris Library are newsletters from the 1950s for a rather boring housing association, complaining about the state of the streets—and even this is in extremely poor French.

All the instigators of this surrealist hoax have admitted their creation on record. On the one hand they said it was a surrealist joke; on the other, a kind of egotistical ploy to be accepted by society. Yet the world still goes mad with every new bloodline myth.

Sang Real

One of the main pieces of evidence for the books about the bloodline of Christ, from Holy Blood, Holy Grail to the Templar Revelation, has been the interpretation of the original term used for the Holy Grail—San Graal. In the 1980s book Holy Blood, Holy Grail, by Michael Baigent et al, we find that it is interpreted differently, placing the g from graal onto the end of san, making sang real. This then translates as royal or holy blood. Mistaking a simple error by a 15th century writer—the only time the error was ever made until the 1980s—an entire theory is based upon something that was simply not true. Sir Walter Skeat, one of the greatest etymologists in England, said, 100 years ago, that this error was "very early falsified," and for what ends he did not know. He pointed out that the original concept meant "mixing bowl," which relates entirely with the theory I put forward in The Serpent Grail.

Leonardo da Vine I

So, now that we know the true etymology of San Graal and that the Priory of Sion never existed, we should also know that da Vinci could not have been a grand master of a nonexistent order that protected a secret that also didn't exist.

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m lirtiii mt\ th\

The Holy Chalice in St. Peter's Rome

In fact, all the historical background and information on da Vinci reveals that he was a skilled and wonderful artist—no great revelation there.

However, there are those strange elements of his paintings, which the Da Vinci Code and other works of fiction pick up on. Take the female-looking character in the Last Supper, for instance: Many have pointed to the fact that this individual looks remarkably feminine. Well, he does. Others have pointed to the Mona Lisa as being not quite feminine enough, and that surely the sitter must have been a boy. Using these assumptions many have claimed that da Vinci was, therefore, homosexual. It is more and more amusing by the day just how far this rubber band can be stretched, before it comes hurtling back and hits somebody in the face.

So what is the truth? Is that a lady in the Last Supper? No.

There was a tradition of painting the disciple whom Christ loved, John the Evangelist, as a slightly boyish individual, thereby bringing questions to the mind of many as to whether Jesus was gay.

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I discovered this to be part of an ancient Gnostic tradition whereby the two Johns (John the Baptist and John the Evangelist) were two sides to the duality—male and female, positive and negative— which needed to be rejoined in order to be complete. Therefore, John the Evangelist was perceived as the feminine principle in this relation, and John the Baptist was the manly, bearded, wild figure.

It was also part of the hidden tradition of the painter's guild of the time to include androgynous elements within their paintings— hence Mona Lisa seeming a little boyish. This androgynous element is there a symbol of the third force, the union of opposites mentioned before, of man and woman, of male and female, of the two sides of our mind that need to be brought into union once again to form the perfect human. There is no evidence whatsoever pointing to da Vinci being involved in any secret society, but the theories of the union of opposites was a rising current in the renaissance world in which he lived, and so that influence would have been absorbed by this perfectionist of a painter.

Did Jesus and Mary Marry and Have Children?

Who would have thought that such a simple question would raise such a controversy and even be taken seriously? To answer this one we need to break it down.

Firstly, if Jesus married Mary Magdalene then we have to admit that Jesus and Mary existed in the first place. Although we have a substantial amount of textual evidence for these biblical characters, this is due to the sheer amount of copying being carried out hundreds of years after the supposed event. We have no actual texts naming either character from the period; most of the texts date to hundreds of years after.

Even if we do admit that these people were real, then we would have to admit that Jesus did walk on water, cast out demons into pigs, and die and resurrect. That, or we would have another option: That the character of Jesus, just like that of Robin Hood and King Arthur, was based upon a real man somewhere, and all the extra mythical and mystical elements were added into the story. Just as Robin married Marion (Mary), and Arthur married Guinevere, so too in this mythical way, Jesus may have married Mary—even though there is no textual evidence for this. »^b 148

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Marion and Mary are the same and imply water and wisdom. Guinevere comes from similar roots, especially as the queen of heaven, which was a title for Mary the mother of Jesus and Isis the mother of Horus. And, as many scholars have pointed out, the two Marys may be amalgamations of a much older myth.

Guinevere is also the queen of serpents and, therefore, knowledge and wisdom, and her name is related in etymology to Eve, which means female serpent and is an indication of wisdom.

Just as the early Christian Church was forming groups such as the Gnostic Ophites or serpent worshippers, raising their communion cup to the good serpent, they were also splitting the threefold mother goddess—Mary—into distinct parts. First the Mother Mary, then the Sister Mary, and then Mary Magdalene, a mysterious element, and we shall see why.

Mary the mother is Isis the mother of Horus. As Horus is the son and in fact reincarnation of Osiris, so Isis or Mary is also his sister and lover. She is all three, the feminine trinity. Mary Magdalene therefore is the hidden lover of Jesus who is both God and the son of God, just like Horus. And all of this mystery tradition relates back to the ancient serpent cult, as Isis, Osiris, and Horus had strong associations with the creative, wise, and immortal serpent.

Jesus was eventually likened to the Mosaic "brazen serpent in the wilderness" and imaged hundreds of times as a serpent upon the cross. Here we have that parallel with Arthur, whose name, Pendragon, means "head serpent" or "head of the serpent."

Now we can see with just these few examples that there is a real code afoot—an ancient code going right back into ancient Egypt and beyond, through Osiris and Isis and to Enki and Ninkhursag in Sumeria and Mesopotamia, who were known themselves as serpent priests or doctors.

But what is this code telling us?

Simply that in order to give birth to our own messiah or anointing, or in order to save ourselves, we need to be in union with wisdom, which is symbolized as both water and the serpent—hence Arthur Pendragon and his wife the queen of serpents, or the early Enki and Ninkhursag, who were serpent deities or Shining Ones and were therefore symbols of enlightenment.

Secret Societies: Gardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

As God was upon the face of the waters of the deep in Genesis, so too must we submerge ourselves in wisdom to bring about the divine creation within us.

So, now we understand that Jesus and Mary, in union, could be a metaphor or a copy of this ancient system. But what are we left with?

There are characters such as Yeshua who, it seems, may have been a real character of the 1st century or thereabouts, and who did preach a new Gnosis. But, there was also Apollonius of Tyana.

Apollonius of Tyana

He was born in the 3rd or 4th year B.C. in Tyana in Cappadocia. At age 16, he apparently became a disciple of Pythagoras, renouncing flesh, wine, and women (so he obviously could not have been that clever). He wore no shoes and let his hair and beard grow long—the first hippy.

He soon became a reformer and fixed his abode in the Temple of Aesculapius, who was a serpent healing deity and is still seen in the sky as Ophiucus, the serpent handler. Here it was said that many sick people came to be cured by him, and so we can only conclude that he learned the methods of healing from this serpent-worshipping cult.

Apollonius was claimed to have been a wise man, which is probably due to the fact that the Nagas of Kashmir in India taught him. These Nagas were the followers of the serpent cult found across the globe and often known in the West as Ophites—the very early Christian Gnostics who perpetuated the hidden wisdom of unification of the opposites. These Ophites were also connected to the Essene community, otherwise known as followers of I sis and who worshipped the serpent, and who are picked out by scholars to be the very people who created the Christ myth.

The biographer of Apollonius, Philostratos, tells us of his journey to Kashmir and the "emerald valley set in a rim of pearls" and of the tales that Apollonius told to his trusted friend, Damus, of dragons that lived in the hills, meaning the Naga serpent sages.

The hill where these wise men lived was defended on all sides by immense piles of rocks. As soon as the travelers had dismounted, a messenger from one of the Masters appeared, wearing, of all

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things, a serpentine Caduceus on his brow indicating the 6th chakra of the kundalini or coiled serpent enlightenment process. Platitudes were given, and in conversation, Apollonius learned that these Nagas had delivered their wisdom to the Egyptians and that Cush "was inhabited by the Ethiopians, an Indian nation." We can only take this to mean that the idea of serpent-worship found a brotherhood in Ethiopia, and it only became named after the serpent following influence from the Naga sages of India.

Apollonius more than passed on wisdom wherever he went, and according to many he lived to be well over 100 years old. Others say that he never died at all, but simply disappeared from view, much like Nagajurna (who gained his wisdom from the same sources and is a possible original of John). This idea of never dying often tends to imply that the "secret Gnostic wisdom" of the sage continued in a sect of some kind—in this case, most likely the Gnostic Ophites.

According to theosophist H.P. Blavatsky, a wise prince of India, a Naga, skilled in magic, made seven rings for the seven planets, which he gave to Apollonius. The great sage wore one for every day, and it was via these, it is said, that he maintained good health and long life. Of course, it may be that he was very small, lived in a mound, and was called Bilbo.

In the Valley of Kashmir, where Apollonius went, there is a place called SriNagar, meaning serpent king. Founded by the Buddhist King Asoka in 300 B.C. there is a local tradition that a great sage or adept came from Europe in the 1st century and eventually died there. Some have said that this was Apollonius, others that it was Jesus himself. There may be some truth in this, as Philostratos does mention a "Temple of the Sun," which matches very closely with one just a few miles away from SriNagar called the Temple of Martland.

Aurelian vowed to erect temples and statues to his honor, "for was there ever any thing among men more holy, venerable, noble, and divine than Apollonius? He restored life to the dead; he did and spoke many things beyond human reach" (The Magus by Francis Barrett).

Truly, temples and statues were erected to Apollonius in many places, including his own town of Tyana, even though later

Secret Societies: Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

Christians destroyed many of them. Unlike Jesus, there is evidence to prove that Apollonius actually existed. As Moncure Conway said in his book Modern Thought, "The world has been for a long time engaged in writing lives of Jesus." Even though they were writing about a man with no provenance.

In the fourth gospel it is said: "There are also many other things that Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen."

The library of such books has grown since then. But when we come to examine them, one startling fact confronts us: All these books relate to a person concerning whom there does not exist a single scrap of contemporary information—not one! Nobody can say with any conviction in truth, and not faith, that Jesus was a real person.

Rostau Modern Mound

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On the other hand and by accepted tradition, Apollonius was born in the reign of Augustus, the great literary age of the nation of which he was a subject. In the Augustan age, historians flourished; poets, orators, critics, and travelers abounded. Yet not one of them mentions the name of Jesus Christ, much less any incident of his life. Jesus left us nothing in writing, although there is a growing speculation that the Gospel of Thomas was written by his hand. This is growing due to modern Christian propaganda. If, indeed, he existed, then he traveled only in Judea and Egypt. Apollonius traveled extensively and wrote extensively. The Emperor Marcus Aurelius admitted that it was to Apollonius that he owed his own philosophy, and erected temples and statues in his honor. No statues or temples were erected to Jesus.

Faust said, "Everyone knows that the Gospels were written neither by Jesus nor by his apostles, but long after their time by some unknown persons, who, judging well that they would hardly be believed when telling of things they had not seen themselves, headed their narratives with the names of the apostles or disciples contemporaneous with the latter."

Conversely, the written record of the life of Apollonius is very sound, and Philostratos, who wrote the Life of Apollonius, was the close friend of Damus, who had related the whole thing in person.

Philostratos said:

Some consider him as one of the Magi, because he conversed with the Magi of Babylon and the Brahmans of India and the Gymnosophists of Egypt. But even his wisdom is reviled, as being acquired by the magic art, so erroneous are the opinions formed of him. Whereas Empedocles and Pythagoras and Democritus, though they conversed with the same Magi, and advanced many paradoxical sentiments, have not fallen under the like imputation. Even Plato, who traveled in Egypt, and blended with his doctrines many opinions collected there from the priests and prophets, incurred not such a suspicion, though above all men on account of his superior wisdom.

But the end was near. The very fact that Apollonius was in danger of usurping the "idea" of Christ with his own "factual" life

Secret Societies! Gardiner's Forbidden Knowledge

caused much consternation among the early Christians. Justin Martyr, one of the Church Fathers of the 2nd century, said, "How is it that the talismans by Apollonius have power over certain members of creation, for they prevent, as we have seen, the fury of the waves, the violence of the winds, and the attacks of wild beasts. And whilst Our Lord's miracles are preserved by tradition alone, those of Apollonius are most numerous, and actually manifested in present facts, so as to lead astray all beholders?"

The book by Philostratos was therefore, and not surprisingly, kept back from translation and distribution. In fact, the books of the New Testament did not appear until at the very least 100 years after the Life of Apollonius. Even the birth of Apollonius bears some remarkable similarities to the fictional life of Christ. While his mother was pregnant with Apollonius, Proteus, the Egyptian god appeared to her and said, "Thou shalt bring forth me!" The mother of Apollonius was to bring forth a god.

Incidentally, Proteus was known to take the form of a snake, and so wisdom gave birth to the real Christ.

Perhaps the fact that so much was written about Apollonius made it impossible to "use" him as the new religious icon. The new creation of the Christian Church needed a fresh start, which would include as many elements of other Pagan beliefs as possible in order to maximize its effectiveness. According to Phillimore, Apollonius actually founded a church and a community, made up of his disciples. It is highly likely that these were connected to a branch of the Essene, known as the Therapeuts and Nazarenes.

Indeed there was a group known as the Apolloniei, the adherents of Apollonius, who actually survived some centuries after his death. These constituted what became the Christian Church, after the Council of Nicaea—so Apollonius did indeed begin Christianity, based upon serpentine myths and traditions of the oldest order.

Eunapius stated that Philostratos should have called his book "The Sojourning of a God Among Men." Instead Philostratos' book was titled the Life of Apollonius —and once the decision had been made to plump for the newly created Christ, the name Apollonius was repressed. It is basically because of books such as the one of Philostratos that the ancient libraries at places such as Alexandria

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were torched. Destroy the evidence of the opposition and there appears to be no opposition. As Dr. Lardner pointed out in his book, Credibility of the Gospels:

It is manifest, therefore, that Philostratos compared Apollonius and Pythagoras; but I do not see that he endeavored to make him a rival of Jesus Christ. Philostratos had never once mentioned our Savior, or the Christians, his followers; neither in this long work, nor in the Lives of the Sophists... There is not so much as an obscure or general description of any men met with by him, whom any can suspect to be Christians of any denomination, either Catholics or heretics.

However, the same is true of Apollonius, who is not mentioned in the New Testament. Or is he? In 1st Corinthians 3:3-6 it says, "for while one saith, I am of Apollos, are ye not carnal? Who, then, is Paul, and whom Apollos, but ministers, by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase."

I could so easily have overlooked this had it not been for a chance discovery of an ancient version of 1st Corinthians found in a French monastery by a Huguenot soldier entitled the Codex Bezae. The name Apollos is spelled Apollonius! In the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the name Apollo in this context can also mean Apollonius. Indeed this Apollos was said to have even visited Paul (the apostle who did not suffer from snakebites) and he was called an Alexandrian Jew. Now we can understand how Paul managed to "see" the Lord on the road to Damascus. It is possible that Apollonius brought back a new gospel of Christina or Christna from the Kashmir interlude, and it was this that gave birth to the Christ of Chrishna and the idea of Christ being the serpent god.

In many respects this answers the issue of Jesus marrying Mary, as this tradition of the uniting of opposites is most profound in the Indian kundalini expressed through the rising serpents upon the rod, which is the third force. This rod became the tree or cross in Christianity with the male Jesus and the female Mary both in association.

Secret Societies: Eardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

The truth of the Da Vinci Code is more real than people know. Jesus and Mary did marry, in the Gnostic sense and not the literal sense. They did spawn a child and he was known simply as Gnosis. However, the evil twin brother known as Catholicism tried to wipe him out, as Seth tried to destroy Osiris, or Mordred killed Arthur, or the sheriff of Nottingham killed Robin. In the end, Seth, Mordred, and the sheriff were themselves brought down, so what will be the verdict on the Catholic Church? It is possible that a Gnostic revival could occur now that the Da Vinci Code has done us the service of raising the questions of the doubtful validity of the literal Jesus myth. It is possible, but, with greed, lust, and hatred being powerful tools in the mind of men, I doubt it. Maybe, by understanding that religion should be more than the rules written by man, we will question our existence again—looking for an answer we thought we already had.

At the center of each one of us, at the very core, there is a place where we become conscious of our unconscious state. Where we wake up to a whole new world that resides within us. This inner world is at peace and is in perfect balance. It is interconnected through the world of the subatomic particle to the very universe. Just as our eyes see the sun, our unconscious senses feel the warmth and absorb the goodness, without our conscious mind giving it a second thought. There is a whole world within us untapped and unknown to modern science, but one that was perfectly understood by the ancients, and they left clues for us to decipher. They understood how to remain conscious and to perceive the unconscious world of senses, and they gave voice and imagery to their experiences, and these became spirits, demons, and gods. We have a lot yet to learn, that has already been forgotten. There is a world full of Gnosis awaiting us.

The question now is, whom does it serve?

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The Illuminati

Many people will have heard of the infamous Illuminati. Others will be wondering what on Earth they could be. Ever since their inception, this 18th century secret society has garnered the imaginations of millions. However, to understand the Illuminati, we must understand two specific institutions—the Freemasons and the Catholic authorities.

Freemasons

The history and origin of the Freemasons is not a simple subject. In fact, it is virtually impossible to decipher the truth from the myriad histories fed into thousands of books on the subject. The reason for this is simply that it is a large organization, but it is split into many facets, each one holding virtual autonomy. Through time, differences of opinion and ritual have arisen. Although we have already taken a look at the serpent origins of Freemasonry, there are elements we need to address in order to better understand their link with the Catholic Church and the Illuminati.

Many Masonic historians try desperately to claim that their lineage stretches right back to the Temple of Solomon and the builder Hiram Abiff—they are even told it as fact in their ceremonies. Others claim descent from Roman and Greek stone masons and the Roman Augurs whom we know had "special knowledge" of the lay of the land and energies related to our modern-day perception of ley-lines and Feng Shui. There can be no strict proof for any of this, although the "secret knowledge" has been passed down the centuries from one adept and initiate to another.

Secret Societies: Gardiner s Forbidden Knowledge

The general consensus has the Freemasons emerging from medieval stonecutters who are known as operative masons. These are the skilled craftsmen who built the great cathedrals and churches of Europe for the Catholic Church, and who included many mysterious images and secrets within their amazing carvings (soft masons or Freemasons, as the carving was free work or soft stone). This version of the history of the Masons claims that the Lodge evolved from the huts erected on site by those medieval masons. As time progressed, the Masons grew in power due to demand for their services, and formed groups or unions, which became known as Lodges.

By the 1600s the Lodges began admitting men who were not operative Masons and were termed gentlemen Masons. The terms developed through time, within the operative Masonic Lodges, and were taken on by these gentlemen Masons—becoming part and parcel of their ritual nature.

However, there are problems with this version of history. The facts state something quite different, although there is no reason to deny that gentlemen did begin to grow in number within the ranks of the Masons. There is indeed plenty of evidence to show that in the 14th century the Masons were already a well-established group, and accepted, or were evolved by, the inclusion of the Knights Templar that had escaped Catholic suppression to Scotland.

The first official documentation is from 1356 from England. It describes the formation of the London Masons Company and the ordinances governing the Lodge that was already established at York Minster. However, these are only the papers that have survived and speak of groups that were forming—it does not deny the fact that there must have been preexisting groups that do not have "paperwork to prove their preexistence." The only hard evidence we do have is the symbolism being employed within the great building works of Europe from the 11th century.

Understanding that this great building exercise erupted with such a vengeance following the first crusade and the setting up of such organizations as the Knights Templar and Cistercians (who were instrumental in bringing back building skills to Europe), is the first part of the puzzle. The Templars and their non-warrior

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cousins, the Cistercians, were more than incidental in both bringing back the seed of alchemical enlightenment from the crusades and the building skills of the Islamic Middle Eastern world. This is seen in the arch and the octagonal designs incorporated into most Templar and Cistercian buildings, as well as other building works carried out under their tutelage.