The People of the Secret [Paperback]

Ernest Scott (Author), Colin Wilson (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1985

Are biological evolution and human history directed by a hierarchy of Intelligences, the lowest level of which makes physical contact with mankind? Do invisible guardians of this planet "seed" ideas into the earth's culture to prepare human beings for huge steps in their development? The author suggests not only that it may be so, but that it may also be possible to recognize these "People of the Secret."

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Do invisible guardians of this planet "seed" ideas into the Earth’s cultures... (to) prepare human beings ahead of time for huge steps in their development? This theory... is discussed in fascinating details " ... Daily Mail

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

... a compelling intellectual adventure. If the author had been born a few centuries ago, he would have been burnt for heresy. But his real crime would not have been in expressing heterodox and dangerous ideas, but in expressing them so brilliantly and persuasively.--Colin Wilson, from the Introduction

Copyright © 1983. Octagon Press. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Paperback: 263 pages
• Publisher: Octagon Press; First Paperback Edition edition (1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0863040381
• ISBN-13: 978-0863040382
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #498,597 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars History is not what it seems, September 2, 2001

By 

George Matthews (UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The People of the Secret (Paperback)

This is a very strange book indeed. It challenges all the established notions of the causes of historical events. It does not read like a cultist account. After reading it I think anyone will find his thoughts about the nature of history will change, even if he thinks all or most of the contents are nonsense.
Clearly the author has been closely associated with the modern expressions of the Sufi tradition.

The references within the text give the reader links to much other material and show signs of genuine scholarship - quite different from the run of the mill cultist books which fill the shelves of so many bookshops.

Among the topics which the western reader may find startling are thoughts about the origins of western science, Shakespear, much of western literature and its relation to what is often thought of as 'eastern' literature. Even the current decline of religion and the rise of drug taking are mentioned as being possibly the results of causes quite unsuspected by the average person.

I have been reading this book since it was first published in 1983 and still find new thoughts in it.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is a jolt out of the nightmare that is History, April 11, 2005

By 

David Paquiot "Dave-O" (New York City) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The People of the Secret (Paperback)

That there are things in history that don't fall in line or don't fit a specific pattern is common knowledge. That there are many unexplained similarities in history is also common knowledge. However, so far there has not been any explication as to 'why'
This book by Ernst Scott with great clarity that there is a `why'. There is an undercurrent of knowledge that has been responsible for shaping many important moments in the history of the human race. By knowledge I don't just mean the quotidian knowledge. The knowledge referred to here is that which can raise the human consciousness to its highest potentialities.
Ernst Scott first carefully makes the case for this knowledge. Then in great detail shows its operation in history. Then Mr. Scott starts to make a case for the "People of the Secret" - the people who possess this knowledge and have been responsible for systematically injecting this into the realm of human affairs.
Whether or not one believes in or accepts Mr. Scott's final conclusion over the course of reading this book serious doubts will be cast on the history we were taught on our elementary and high school benches. If what James Joyce said is true, and History is that nightmare we are trying to awake from, then this book is a strong jolt that may start to rouse us out of that deep sleep of ages. If after reading this book one is curious or further intrigue or would like to learn more, I would recommend, The Sufis and The Way of the Sufi by Idries Shah.
Thanks

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction to modern sufism, March 6, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The People of the Secret (Paperback)

If read as a modern teaching story, this is a very good book. Not everything in it is a straightforward real event, I suspect, but a method of giving people with no experience of a 'mystical' organization a feel for happens within one. By reading it and several other of the Octagon and Ishk titles in the same vein (TRAVELS WITH A SUFI MASTER, ADVENTURES IN AFGANISTAN, ALONE IN THE ARABIAN NIGHTS, ETC.) one can get a feel for how modern Sufism is presented. This is as close as one can probably get without being a student. It is a very good read.