A History Of Secret Societies [Paperback]

Arkon Daraul (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2000

Almost every social system throughout history has produced its secret societies. Here is a unique study of such societies from earliest recorded times to the present, along with an analysis of their forms, rituals, and beliefs. The author has traveled extensively to gather documentation. The Charcoal Burners of Italy, the Castrators of Russia, the Old Man of the Mountains, and the Gnostics are but a few of the many described.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Citadel Press (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806508574
• ISBN-13: 978-0806508573
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,307,108 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars So-so, February 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: A History Of Secret Societies (Paperback)

Written under one of Idris Shah's many pen names. This book provides a dated and suspicously incomplete overview of some so-called secret societies. One howler is that he considers the Tibetan Buddhists a secret society! - they never were but until the earlier 1900's certainly inaccessible to most foreigners. I guess Shah thought that his audience was too stupid to figure this one out. Another is the so-called Illuminati he makes a connection with Bayazid Ansari's atheistic cult of libertines and bandits with Adam Weishaupt group. However he provides no references to back up this claim.

Overall this book is a ok place to start with secret societies - but PLEASE take what the author says with a grain of salt. Shah has a history of playing it fast and loose with facts in order to support his many claims like being the Grand Shiekh of all Sufis and which is not recognized by any Sufi orders - Naqshbandi, Mevlevi, etc,

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating book, January 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A History of Secret Societies (Hardcover)

If you're looking for a shallow book on human perversity this isn't it. Daraul's book is a serious investigation into the psychology and cultural characteristics of secret societies through the ages. Well worth the reading!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The 'Bible' of Secret Society Literature, November 15, 1999

By 

Tojoyama (Huntsville, Alabama USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A History of Secret Societies (Hardcover)

The source for the ILLUMINATI Triligy Books, Daroul discusses the major secret societies of the last two milleniums. Lacks the most intimate details of each society, due to its modest size, but goes deep enough to interest both the novice and informed reader.