When history looks back on the great occultists of the 19th and 20th centuries, it tends to record the more flamboyant and controversial.

We read about McGregor Mathers and the Golden Dawn, the wild magick of Aleister Crowley, the Theosophy of Madame Blavatsky, the Wicca of Gardner and the dry German occult wisdom of Ruldolf Steiner and so forth.

It is a shame the name Manly Palmer Hall does not rank highly in these records or in the public memory.

During the turmoil of the 1920s and 1930s many great spiritual teachers emerged and Manly P. Hall was one of them.

He was not seeking publicity, flamboyant or controversial, and escaped the blessings and curse of mass media. He avoided being considered a guru, master, saint or adept, and worked quietly and tirelessly to promote the ancient wisdom.

At the same time he achieved more than many of this occult contemporaries. Hall emphasised the significance of the intellect in esoteric life; he pursued an approach that balanced solid academic research with myth, legend and even intuition. To my mind, Manly Palmer Hall was a man way beyond his time.

He authored well over two hundred works on esoteric subjects ranging from astrology, the Bible, Tarot, dreams, mysticism, Eastern and Western philosophy, religion, psychology, symbology, and reincarnation.

In addition he produced literally hundreds of essays and a monthly magazine called the PRS Journal (Philosophy–Religion–Science). Over the course of six decades he delivered eight thousand lectures.

When one considers the miles of volumes of New Age and spiritual books which flounder in sentimentalism, woolly thinking and wild conjecture, the coherent basis of Manly P. Hall’s works are refreshing and just as significant in 2005 as when they were first produced.

During the 1920s Mr Hall began work on what was to become one of the classics of 20th century occultism. It took him some six years to research The Secret Teachings of all Ages. He travelled the world, collected primary source texts, and studied ancient wisdom to produce what is still considered a masterpiece. It is a unique volume balancing mythology and legend with a solid background in occult literature, history and mysticism.

Its first edition in 1928 cost the amazing sum of $100,000 US dollars to publish. It was a magnificent work that combined stunning production values, superb art specially commissioned for the volume, and a text which was encyclopedic in its coverage, and erudite and insightful in its commentary.

In 1934 Mr. Hall founded the Philosophical Research Society, which continues today, to publish his expanded library of work, hold lectures, undertake research, and teach the ancient mysteries.

While it is always hard to choose one of his works when he has written so many, The Secret Teachings of all Ages was and is an amazing achievement.

It is not a tabletop book or a quick glimpse at strange practices of occult adepts, but a deep and wise journey through the spectrum of ancient and esoteric traditions. This is considered to be Manly P. Hall’s Magnum Opus.

Through exhaustive research, he concentrates the teachings of nearly six hundred distinguished authorities on religion and philosophy, bringing an esoteric and initiatic interpretation of the themes underlying mythology, philosophy, religion, rituals, and arcane mysteries of all ages.

It is hard to summarise the contents of such a book. It ranges from the mysteries of Atlantis, through Platonism, Esotericism, Alchemy and Gnosticism to practical magic, gems, Tarot and Freemasonry.

The detail included in this work is extraordinary. It offers concise yet erudite introductions to everything from Kabbalah to the Pythagorean Theory of Music and Colour, the legend of Hiram to Ceremonial Magic, the Rosicrucians to the American Indians, Islamic Mystics and the Secrets of Hermes!

When I began my spiritual quest over thirty years ago, this was one of the first titles I purchased. Re-reading it many years later it is the only work that still stands the test of time.

It is not only incredibly well researched, but intellectually credible as well as spiritually important. It is a balanced work avoiding extremes, critically looking at esoteric theories and offering a trustworthy overview of a field which brims with hucksters and fanatics.

The early editions of The Secret Teachings of all Ages were published in hardback folio size editions with a wide selection of artwork by J. Augustus Knapp. While these are superb volumes, they were always somewhat hard to read. They were sumptuous to behold but at folio size made study a bit difficult.

The new edition is a delight. It has been totally redesigned into a much easier to read format, including all the text from the original edition presented in a more easy on the eye format. It is over 750 pages in length and also includes 16 of the original full colour plates and some 100 black and white illustrations.

This 2005 Tarcher edition brings this classic to a new audience. It sustains the vision of the original through a small selection of the great images which adorned its pages but most significantly includes the full unabridged text.

If you are looking for one book to begin your search for the secrets of esotericism, or indeed just want to deepen your view of religion, spirituality and science, this is the book to get hold of!

– Reviewed by Robert Burns in New Dawn No. 92