Best works to learn about freemasonry?

[ElectricEgregore]

Hello,

we all came in touch with some of the masonic lore at some point I would guess,
often times I learned the most when watching some good old 3h 2010s youtube videos about symbology and alike.

Now all that I know is a muffled memory and I just wanted to ask around what you would recommend on learning about
the symbolism and cross connections, as well as the basics of the organizations.

I have the albert pike pdf somewhere, what do you think about his works?
I saw that there is a post on rare masonic books, still I wanted to find out about your recommendations.

As a little bonus, if some of you are into the Odd Fellow lore feel free to enlighten us and share some recommendations on their brotherhood.

Thank you!

 

[Ziran]

I just wanted to ask around what you would recommend on learning about
the symbolism and cross connections, as well as the basics of the organizations.

try this:

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[dreamtuned123]

try this:

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Thank you for the link.

A.E.Waite can be hard to read (and boring according to Crowley and not that many do not agree). Albert Pike altought speaks of the highest levels of Freemasonry, can also be very thoughtful of the lower levels and he is also great summing different branches of the occult and religion into a unique sentences. So I highly recommend his Morals & Dogma too.

 

[Firetree]

Thank you for the link.

A.E.Waite can be hard to read (and boring according to Crowley and not that many do not agree). Albert Pike altought speaks of the highest levels of Freemasonry, can also be very thoughtful of the lower levels and he is also great summing different branches of the occult and religion into a unique sentences. So I highly recommend his Morals & Dogma too.

I agree about Waite . Although he was in a Lodge for years and ( ? ) he might have been a Lodge Master , his writings on it, like other subjects he wrote about he has been criticized for prioritizing his own mystical interpretation over strict historical evidence. Some of his research, such as on Robert Fludd, was purely speculative rather than evidence-based , like his work on the supposed 'Hidden Church of the Holy Grail ' .

I agree with what you said about Pike as well . We also have to remember that from these more 'mystical' or magical ' highet degree ( above 3rd ) 'Red Lodge masons ' much of the modern magical tradition descended ;

Gilbert has written some interesting other works on Freemasonry as well .

Including ;
The Masonic Career of A. E. Waite (1987): A specific study of A. E. Waite's involvement in Freemasonry.

"The Sixth Liberal Art: Astronomy and Freemasonry" (2007): A paper delivered to the Quatuor Coronati Lodge.

and

• World Freemasonry (1991): An illustrated overview of the global fraternity.
• The Selected Masonic Writings of A. E. Waite (1988): Edited by Gilbert, this collection highlights the work of Arthur Edward Waite.
• The Magical Mason: Forgotten Hermetic Writings of William Wynn Westcott (1983): Edited by Gilbert, focusing on one of the founders of the Golden Dawn.
• The Golden Dawn Companion (1986): A key text on the history of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.
• The Golden Dawn Scrapbook (1997): A detailed look at the rise and fall of the magical order.