BOOK REVIEW - Secret Societies and the Hermetic Code
Michael Gleason
Books ISBN 978-1-59477-208-5 204 pages Paperback $16.95 (U.S.) $19.50
(Canada) www.DestinyBooks.com
Like most of the books from Destiny Books (an imprint of Inner Traditions)
this one assumes that the reader is not a dilettante in the esoteric fields.
Readers who do not have a background in mythological subjects, and at least
a casual acquaintance with Classical and Medieval art and artists (of many
varieties) are likely to find themselves bewildered (or at least mildly
confused) by this explanation of Hermeticism in the arts.
The author explores the fields of painting, sculpture, architecture and
music in his, unfortunately superficial, explanation of the transmission of
esoteric secrets. While he repeatedly states that these secrets are encoded
in the various works he looks at, he fails to convey a sense of what these
secrets are or, even more importantly, what clues exist to show their
existence.
I understand that occult secrets are hidden. After all, that is what occult
means. And I also understand that such secrets are not intended for
distribution to the "profane" population. But unless one has an extensive
background is esoteric subjects, or has access to a knowledgeable teacher,
it would nice to have a starting point to begin one's investigations.
Without that there is no framework to build upon.
This lack of information is particularly noticeable in the chapters on
sculpture. He looks at the Sphinx, the Venus de Milo, the lady of Elche,
the David, and the Perseus with the Head of Medusa. While each is an
outstanding example of sculpture in its own right, he makes no attempt to
draw them together, or to explain how he views them as examples of
transmitters of the Hermetic code.
As a book exploring the field of art, this work succeeds admirably.
However, it fails, in my opinion, to live up to its title and subtitle (The
Rosicrucian, Masonic, and esoteric Transmission in the Arts).
As a rule, I generally recommend books by this company without reservation.
This time I must place conditions on my recommendations. This book is
well-written (from a technical point of view), contains glorious color
photos, and is a nice book to have around. It is not, however, one which I
feel is necessary to have in your library.