14 - The Illuminati
	
	Many people will have heard of the infamous Illuminati. Others will be 
	wondering what on Earth they could be. Ever since their inception, this 18th 
	century secret society has garnered the imaginations of millions. 
	
	 
	
	However, 
	to understand the Illuminati, we must understand two specific institutions - 
	the Freemasons and the Catholic authorities.
	 
	
	
	
	Freemasons
	The history and origin of the Freemasons is not a simple subject. In fact, 
	it is virtually impossible to decipher the truth from the myriad histories 
	fed into thousands of books on the subject.
	
	 
	
	The reason for this is simply 
	that it is a large organization, but it is split into many facets, each one 
	holding virtual autonomy. Through time, differences of opinion and ritual 
	have arisen. Although we have already taken a look at the serpent origins of 
	Freemasonry, there are elements we need to address in order to better 
	understand their link with the Catholic Church and the Illuminati.
	
	Many Masonic historians try desperately to claim that their lineage 
	stretches right back to the Temple of Solomon and the builder Hiram Abiff - 
	they are even told it as fact in their ceremonies. Others claim descent from 
	Roman and Greek stone masons and the Roman Augurs whom we know had “special 
	knowledge” of the lay of the land and energies related to our modern-day 
	perception of ley-lines and Feng Shui. 
	
	 
	
	There can be no strict proof for any 
	of this, although the “secret knowledge” has been passed down the centuries 
	from one adept and initiate to another.
	
	The general consensus has the Freemasons emerging from medieval stonecutters 
	who are known as operative masons. These are the skilled craftsmen who built 
	the great cathedrals and churches of Europe for the Catholic Church, and who 
	included many mysterious images and secrets within their amazing carvings 
	(soft masons or Freemasons, as the carving was free work or soft stone
	
	 
	
	This version of the history of the Masons claims that the Lodge evolved from 
	the huts erected on site by those medieval masons. As time progressed, the 
	Masons grew in power due to demand for their services, and formed groups or 
	unions, which became known as Lodges.
	
	By the 1600s the Lodges began admitting men who were not operative Masons 
	and were termed gentlemen Masons. The terms developed through time, within 
	the operative Masonic Lodges, and were taken on by these gentlemen Masons - 
	becoming part and parcel of their ritual nature.
	
	However, there are problems with this version of history. 
	
	 
	
	The facts state 
	something quite different, although there is no reason to deny that 
	gentlemen did begin to grow in number within the ranks of the Masons. There 
	is indeed plenty of evidence to show that in the 14th century the Masons 
	were already a well-established group, and accepted, or were evolved by, the 
	inclusion of the Knights Templar that had escaped Catholic suppression to 
	Scotland.
	
	The first official documentation is from 1356 from England. It describes the 
	formation of the London Masons Company and the ordinances governing the 
	Lodge that was already established at York Minster. 
	
	 
	
	However, these are only 
	the papers that have survived and speak of groups that were forming - it 
	does not deny the fact that there must have been preexisting groups that do 
	not have “paperwork to prove their preexistence.” 
	
	 
	
	The only hard evidence we 
	do have is the symbolism being employed within the great building works of 
	Europe from the 11th century.
	
	Understanding that this great building exercise erupted with such a 
	vengeance following the first crusade and the setting up of such 
	organizations as the Knights Templar and Cistercians (who were instrumental 
	in bringing back building skills to Europe), is the first part of the 
	puzzle. The Templars and their non-warrior cousins, the Cistercians, were 
	more than incidental in both bringing back the seed of alchemical 
	enlightenment from the crusades and the building skills of the Islamic 
	Middle Eastern world. 
	
	 
	
	This is seen in the arch and the octagonal designs 
	incorporated into most Templar and Cistercian buildings, as well as other 
	building works carried out under their tutelage.
	
	Also built into these structures are huge amounts of numerological symbols 
	and “mystical” metaphors. These methods were understood and carried on by 
	the Freemasons who today ritualize these ancient ways, and many probably do 
	not even understand their correct purpose. These mystical building metaphors 
	are as ancient as Stonehenge or the Great Pyramids - even if the term 
	Freemason is not.
	
	By the mid 17th century, there is definite evidence of large scale Masonic 
	Lodges, as Elias Ashmole, the creator of the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, 
	records in his diary. He was made a Mason in the Lodge at his 
	father-in-law’s house. Many today split up the Masonic Lodges into 
	Operative, Accepted, and Freemasonry; however, they are much like the 
	Catholic Church’s sub groups and monasteries, such as Cistercians, 
	Franciscans, and even Jesuits - they are all from the same original source.
	
	The Bible and specifically the Temple of Solomon gave the Freemasons a 
	religious and acceptable framework to work on, and the symbolism employed 
	with the operative mason’s tools was worked to match the ancient mysteries 
	such as the “as above, so below” Hermetic principle.
	
	A Timeline of Known Dates:
	
		
			
			A.D.
1250 Matthew Paris drawing shows Henry II in conference with operative 
	Masons. 
A.D.
1356 The formation of the London Masons Company and ordinances governing the 
	Lodge at York. 
A.D.
1376 The first use of the word Freemason. 
A.D.
1390 The Regius Poem from Salisbury Cathedral is Masonic.
			
A.D.
1410 The Cooke Manuscript written for the Masonic school at Salisbury. 
			
A.D.
1425 Henry VI forbids the yearly congregation of Masons. 
			
A.D.
1599 Minutes taken at Aichisons Haven Lodge and St. Mary’s Lodge in 
	Edinburgh. 
A.D.
1646 Elias Ashmole is initiated into the Masons. 
A.D.
1717 The formation of the first Grand Lodge of London. 
			
A.D.
1733 The first American Lodge is opened. 
		
	
	
	Today the Freemasons are a global phenomenon, with members from across the 
	business community, religious establishment, and politics. 
	
	 
	
	The influence 
	they have is obviously huge and universal. They have links with many other 
	“orders,” such as the Sovereign Order of the Knights of Malta, and have had 
	over the years a lot of bad press for the influence they have brought to 
	bear. They eventually swallowed up other institutions such as the Weishaupt 
	Illuminati (which we will discuss shortly). 
	
	 
	
	Part of this influence has been 
	shown by hundreds of authors to have had effect all over the world and to 
	have been more than incidental in the instigating in full or part the 
	revolutions in France, Russia, and even the American Revolutionary War.
	
	Some quotes from these sources: Conventional wisdom says the Philippine 
	Insurrection of 1896 was ignited because of native opposition to the power 
	of the Catholic Church in the Islands. The revolutionary fire was fuelled by 
	the writings of Jose Rizal, augmented by the political leadership of Emilio 
	Aguinaldo.
	
	 
	
	In reality the Philippine Insurrection was orchestrated by 
	Freemasonry, and while Emilio Aguinaldo indeed led that revolution, he did 
	so as a dedicated member and tool of the Craft.
	
	 
	
	That insight into Philippine 
	history was suppressed by the United States Government for 45 years, until 
	it finally was revealed by historian John
	T. Farrell in 1954.
	
	The Scottish Rite monthly [New Age] added: 
	
		
		“The first Revolution in March 
	1917 is said to have been inspired and operated from these lodges and all 
	the members of Kerenski’s government belonged to them.” 
		
		(Behind the Lodge 
	Door, Paul A. Fisher)
	
	
	Freemasonry has worked in a hidden but constant manner to prepare the 
	revolution [French]. 
	
	 
	
	We are then in complete agreement on the point that 
	freemasonry was the only author of the revolution, and the applause which I 
	receive from the Left, and to which I am little accustomed, proves, 
	gentlemen, that you acknowledge with me that it was masonry which made the 
	French revolution. (Taken from the chamber of Deputies during the session on 
	July 1, 1904 and stated by the Marquis de Rosanbo)
	
	According to Fisher, again, the rebellion in Italy against Papal governments 
	during the 1830s,
	
		
		“was known as the Risorgimento, which, in reality, was a 
	classic Masonic revolutionary movement. Its leaders were Giuseppe Mazzini, 
	Giuseppe Garibaldi, Camillo Cavour and King Victor Emmanuel II - all ardent 
	Freemasons.” 
		
		(King Victor Emmanuel II was later poisoned by his son, Prince 
	Umberto, who it is then claimed was assassinated by the order of Masonic 
	Lodges.)
	
	
	Mazzini, according to the Grand Commander of Scottish Rite Freemasonry in 
	America, was the first head of modern Freemasonry in Italy.
	
		
		One historian, Charles Heckethorn, in his book, Secret Societies, says the 
	chilling word “Mafia” is an acronym meaning,
		
			
			“Mazzini Autoriza Furti, Incendi, 
	Avelenameti:” that is: “Mazzini authorizes thefts, arson and poisoning.” 
			
		
		
		(Behind the Lodge Door, Paul A. Fisher)
		 
		
		Practically all the heroes of Italian liberty were Masons.
		
		(New England 
	Craftsman 1920)
A great part of Europe - the whole of Italy and France, and a great portion 
	of Germany, to say nothing of other countries - are covered with a network 
	of these secret societies, just as the superficies of the Earth is now being 
	covered with railroads. And what are their objects? They do not attempt to 
	conceal themselves. They do not want constitutional government. They do not 
	want ameliorated institutions; they do not want provincial councils nor the 
	recording of votes. 
		
		(Benjamin Disraeli, future Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	of Great Britain and Prime Minister - Hansard’s Parliamentary Debates, 1876)
	
	
	A lot of these quotes seem to point at a war between the Catholic Church and 
	the Freemasons. 
	
	 
	
	This is an interesting point and one that confuses many 
	people when they see that the Masons are actually linked and were created by 
	the Catholic Church (or the other way around). This is a standard ploy used 
	by secret society people across the world, and even to be found within the 
	Statutes of many secret societies and even religious orders. It was the 
	“done thing” to appear on the outside to be against the powers of authority, 
	while all the time working for them.
	
	The Freemasons can clearly be shown to have evolved from esoteric sects 
	emanating from within and even before the Catholic Church and as a direct 
	result of Templar influence in Scotland. So the Masons could be traced back 
	to the Catholic Church.
	
	This goes back to the Templars, a Catholic order. It also goes back to the 
	Knights of St. John or Knights of Malta.
	
	 
	
	Both the Templars and the Knights 
	of Malta have reemerged from within the Masons and are now orders themselves 
	- in various forms. Most still owe allegiance to the Masons, but are 
	distinct. The Knights of Malta can directly be traced back to their origin 
	and are now located in the Vatican.
	
	Now the Jesuits are spoken of elsewhere in this book, but they certainly are 
	part of the Catholic Church and, in my opinion, originally influenced the 
	Illuminati. This created a secular and separate society that later formed 
	back into the Masons - who were created by the Catholics anyway - do we see 
	a picture emerging here?
	
	There is a glimmer of that central part of the wheel to which all the spokes 
	seem to be attached. Before the Illuminati merged into the Masons, they had 
	been implicated in the creation of several other groups such as the 
	Rosicrucians, Golden Dawn, and even the Lutherans and Protestants!
	
	Even South America was regained via the Spanish under guidance of Jesuit and 
	other Monastic Orders - all Catholics.
	 
	
	
	
	Rosicrucians
	The earliest real documentation for the Rosicrucian ideals is from 1597.
	
	 
	
	It 
	is said that a certain alchemist traveled across Europe seeking to begin a 
	society to carry out his newly discovered alchemical ideals. The Fama 
	Fraternitas and the General Reformation of the World appeared in 1614 as 
	fully fledged documents, so he must have succeeded. The founder is claimed 
	to be a Christian Rosenkreuz, which is obviously a false name and means the 
	rosy cross of the Christians.
	
	It is claimed that this character traveled across Arabia, studied at Fez in 
	Egypt and returned to Europe with his message - a message that is decidedly 
	ancient. The origin of this enigmatic group is false and was, therefore, 
	created by whoever did begin the order. 
	
	 
	
	What clues do we have?
	 
	
	
	
	The rosy cross, the Rosicrucian symbol
	
	 clearly on display at Rosslyn Chapel, 
	Edinburgh
	 
	
	The coat of arms of Martin Luther, that staunch anti-Catholic, included the 
	rose and the cross.
	
	 
	
	There are also parallels with Arabic Illuminati schools 
	such as those of Abdelkadir Gilani, who was known as the shining rose. 
	However, when we look at the origins of Masonry and the rituals and beliefs 
	held within, we find they are not dissimilar.
	
	 
	
	It appears that Rosicrucianism 
	is yet another form of that Catholic-bred Diaspora - just like the Jesuit 
	creation of the Illuminati, drawing on the undercurrents of mysticism to 
	create a seemingly anti-self organization. The easiest way of winning a 
	football game is to own both sides.
	
	Just like the Freemasons, the Alumbrados (Illuminated Ones), the Illuminati, 
	and dozens of other groups around at the time, the Rosicrucian ways were 
	linked to the influential Sufi mystics, who had influenced the world for 
	such a long time. The methods required the deepest of concentration upon 
	“the master,” so that absolute adherence to the “way” was normal. It was 
	another method of control. 
	
	 
	
	The void left behind by the strictness and 
	rigidity of Catholicism was easily filled by hundreds of such groups - 
	including the emerging Protestants.
	
	Today the Rosicrucians are a worldwide order with thousands of members - but 
	their influence on the world now is minimal. Although there is a hint in one 
	of their books, which tells us that the influence of the person or soul they 
	call the Ego will keep returning to constantly make alterations to the way 
	forward for mankind.
	
	In this small piece we are told that it is the same source (Ego) from where 
	all “spiritual illumination” has derived - and I would agree.
	
		
		Many centuries have rolled by since the birth, as Christian Rosenkreux, of 
	the individual who we know and honor by the name - the Founder of the Most 
	Holy Order of The Rosicrucians.
Though by many outsiders his existence is regarded as a myth, it is 
	nevertheless true that his birth marked the beginning of a new epoch in the 
	spiritual life of the western World. That particular Ego has also been in 
	continuous incarnation ever since, in one or another of the European 
	countries, taking a new body as his successive vehicles outlived their 
	usefulness, or circumstances rendered it expedient that he change the scene 
	of his activities. 
		 
		
		Moreover, he is incarnate today - an initiate of high 
	degree; an active and potent factor in all affairs of the West - although 
	unknown to the world.
As are all such individuals, he is a representative of the Central Conclave 
	of the Elder Brothers of humanity. His mission was and is to show the 
	spiritual significance of all scientific discoveries, thus counteracting as 
	far as possible the deadening influence of materialistic science, which, for 
	reasons previously given, the Elder Brothers dread more than any other 
	manifestation of human activity.
To this end he labored with the Alchemists centuries before the advent of 
	modern science. He, through an intermediary, inspired the now-mutilated 
	works of Bacon. 
		 
		
		Jacob Boehme and others received through him the inspiration 
	which makes their work so spiritually illuminating. In the works of the 
	immortal Goethe and the masterpieces of Wagner the same influence meets us.
		
		
		(The Rosicrucian Cosmo-Conception by Max Heindel, 1910)
	
	
	This particular Ego has been manifesting itself throughout time - and I 
	would agree. 
	
	 
	
	However, I also say that it is the same Shining influence 
	throughout man’s history that has been making these moves, stepping in and 
	out of the scene as cerebral evolution has moved mankind forward. These Rosicrucians call this influence the Central Conclave of the Elder Brothers. 
	
	
	 
	
	The text continues and tells us who can “see” these secrets:
	
		
		It hides from the profane, but reveals to the Initiate the more clearly how 
	he is to labor day by day to make for himself that choicest of all gems, the 
	Philosopher’s Stone - more precious than the Kohinoor; nay, than the sum of 
	all earthly wealth!
Apparently Christ himself wrought this marvelous Stone while incarnate in 
	the body of Jesus....The Reichs-Anzeiger said, in one article: 
		
		
			
			“Yes, there 
	is a Philosopher’s Stone. It is an Elixir of Life. It is all, and much more 
	than has ever been claimed for it. Moreover, most people have had it in 
	their hands often, but know it not!”
		
		
		How absolutely and unqualifiedly true that is, yet at the same time how 
	thoroughly misleading, none can guess save those who know the secret, but 
	even the eavesdropping traitor who had listened and overheard the words 
	spoken among the brethren, could have profited thereby.”
	
	
	The writer then points out that: 
	
		
		To those who are entitled to the knowledge, 
	many a mystery will reveal itself “between the lines” in this work, 
	suggested but not spoken, for to reveal them, save from the lip to ear to 
	worthy persons and under proper circumstances, would be a grievous breach of 
	faith, not to be contemplated.
	
	
	The secrets held within the pages of that 1910 book are simple to behold 
	and, upon reading the text, reveals nothing more than the enlightenment 
	experience.
	
	We are even told that in order to become an initiate we cannot simply apply. 
	
	
	 
	
	We will be watched from the sidelines and our merits in this life counted 
	towards being offered the “golden key to the temple.” Of course, in 1910, 
	there was no World Wide Web, and today we find this once-influential secret 
	society now offering courses with credit card payments. 
	
	 
	
	Although they still 
	claim to be teachers of the Mysteries and custodians of the Sacred Teachings 
	of a spiritual power more,
	
		
		“potent in the life of the Western World than any 
	of the visible Governments; they may not interfere with humanity so as to 
	deprive them of their free will.” 
	
	
	Reading “between the lines,” this implies 
	that they are an invisible government.
	
	This secret government takes the form of seven Brothers who, Heindel 
	continues, “go out into the World whenever occasion requires; appearing as 
	men among other men or working in their invisible vehicles with or upon 
	others as needed; yet it must be strictly kept in mind that they never 
	influence anyone against their will or contrary to their desires; but only 
	strengthen good wherever found.”
	
	Of course a person’s “will” is dependent upon what has already influenced 
	him or her, and “good” is relative. Is it really our “will” to run up huge 
	debt while trying to obtain the elusive happiness we are fed by the mass 
	media?
	 
	
	
	
	The Illuminati
	In Essai sur la secte des Illumines, 1789, 
	Mason de Luchet wrote:
	
		
		There are a certain number of people who have
arrived at the highest degree of imposture. They
have conceived the project of reigning over opinions,
and of conquering, not kingdoms, nor provinces, but
the human mind. This project is gigantic, and has
something of madness in it, which causes neither
alarm nor uneasiness; but when we descend to
details, when we regard what passes before our eyes
of the hidden principles, when we perceive a sudden
revolution in favour of ignorance and incapacity, we
must look for the cause of it; and if we find that a
revealed and known system explains all the
phenomena which succeed each other with terrifying
rapidity, how can we not believe it?
	
	
	The Illuminati are, for many, the “Men in Black,” the silent masters in the 
	background who plot our futures. 
	
	 
	
	To others they are a fable, a boys club, 
	created by frustrated Freemasons in the 18th century. There is, as ever, 
	truth in all, but we must understand that most of the time we end up 
	believing exactly what the marketing and propaganda wants us to believe.
	
	Sweeping aside the Christian Bible Belt influence of anticonspiracy 
	theorists, and those crazy ideas of the conspiracy theorists such as “they 
	came from outer space,” we have to get back to the basic facts as we know 
	them.
	
	Standard history tells us that the Illuminati was started by Jean Adam 
	Weishaupt, the founder of the Order of the Illuminati. Weishaupt was born in 
	Bavaria on February 6, 1748. 
	
	 
	
	His father, Baron Ickstatt, was a professor at 
	the University of Ingolstadt, having married the niece of the curator. The 
	baron secured a scholarship at the Jesuit College for Adam, who then went on 
	to become a law student at the age of 15. 
	
	 
	
	Ingolstadt was a steadfastly 
	Jesuit area and had been for more than 200 years. Dissent was not permitted, 
	even though they had been partially suppressed in 1773 by Clement XIV. It 
	has been said of the Jesuits that they were the world’s largest and most 
	powerful secret service - due mainly to the fact that they were feared by 
	many in the Catholic Church, and that a universal “confession” could be well 
	utilized for blackmail.
	
	The Jesuits were founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola and nine companions, just 
	like the Knights Templar.
	
	Interestingly, Nicholas Poussin, the infamous painter of the Shepherds in 
	Arcadia, was also a Jesuit, and it seems, from the pages of history, that 
	the Jesuit Order has been at the center of many outrages. They are intimate 
	with the Vatican, and history has shown that there is little in the politics 
	of the world that the Vatican has not had a hand in. 
	
	 
	
	According to a 
	converted nun,
	
		
		M.F. Cusack: The Jesuits offer the world at large a system of theology by 
	which every law, Divine or human, may be broken with impunity, and by which 
	the very Bulls of Popes may be defied. It is a ghastly religion; it is a
	religion to be abhorred by all honest and honerable men.
		
		(The Trail of the 
	Serpent, Inquire Within)
	
	
	So according to this 19th century writer, they were even above the Bulls of 
	the Pope. Edwin A. Sherman, an American Freemason, also wrote, in the 19th 
	century:
	
		
		The Jesuits laugh at us; and during their hilarity, the rattlesnake is 
	coiled at our feet, climbing to strike us in the heart.
	
	
	And even President Lincoln, who was finally assassinated after numerous attempts, said: 
	
		
		The Jesuits are so expert in those deeds of 
	blood that Henry IV said that it was impossible to escape them, and he 
	became their victim, though he did all he could to protect himself… I know 
	that the Jesuits never forget nor forsake.
	
	
	Amazingly, in the conspiracy theorists’ world, the Jesuits have also been 
	implicated in the creation of the anti-Semitic Protocols of the Elders of 
	Zion, as they had already been shown to have been implicated in The Secrets 
	of the Elders of Bourg-Fontaine, another “stirring” work.
	
	We must also note that the Jesuits have hundreds of links with the Masonic 
	Order and Templar symbols.
	
	 
	
	In the Jesuit Extreme Oath of Induction, as 
	recorded in the Journals of the 62nd Congress, 3rd Session of the U.S.A. 
	(from which it was removed at a later date and quoted here from the book 
	Subterranean Rome by Charles Didier, 1843), we find that:
	
		
		On either side stands a monk, one of whom holds a banner of yellow and 
	white, which are Papal colors, and the other a black banner with a dagger 
	and a red cross above a skull and crossbones [a Templar symbol].
	
	
	According to this same text, the letters I-N-R-I are established, and mean 
	Iustum Necar Reges Impius (Exterminate impious kings). 
	
	 
	
	The superior then 
	states:
	
		
		...among Roman Catholics to be a Roman Catholic, and to be a spy even among 
	your own brethren; to believe no man, to trust no man…and obtaining their 
	confidence, to seek even to preach from their pulpits and to denounce with 
	all vehemence in your nature our Holy Religion and the Pope; and even to 
	descend so low as to become a Jew among Jews, that you might be enabled to 
	gather together all information for the benefit of your Order...
		 
		
		You have 
	been taught to plant insidiously the seeds of jealousy and hatred between 
	communities, provinces, states that were at peace, and to incite them to 
	deeds of blood, involving them in war with each other, and to create 
	revolutions and civil wars in countries that were independent and 
	prosperous… to take sides with the combatants and to act secretly with your 
	brother Jesuit, who might be engaged on the other side. You have been taught 
	your duty as a spy, to gather all statistics, facts and information in your 
	power from every source; to integrate yourself into the confidence of the 
	family circle of protestants and heretics of every class and character, as 
	well as that of the merchant, the banker, the lawyer, among the schools and 
	universities, in parliaments and legislatures, and the judiciaries and 
	councils of state, and to be all things to all men.
	
	
	It seems to be a peculiar world that the Jesuits inhabit. On the one hand 
	they fraternise with Freemasons, royalty, and presidents, and on the other, 
	they take an oath that puts them at odds with just about everybody who is 
	not Catholic.
	
	It is into this world that Weishaupt was brought up.
	
	By 1775, Weishaupt was professor of canon law at Ingolstadt, and it was this 
	year he or somebody else chose for Weishaupt to form a plan of an 
	association of which he would head. This association would “oppose the 
	forces of superstition and lies” - which implies religion. The thoughts of 
	many commentators are that Weishaupt so hated the Jesuits that he thoroughly 
	intended to do away with them once and for all. 
	
	 
	
	Others believe that Weishaupt was in fact trained by the Jesuits for the purpose of raising a 
	worldwide army of spies who would constantly be feeding back information - 
	information that the Jesuits could not get anymore through their 
	confessions.
	
	 
	
	In fact, the Illuminati even set up their own confessions in 
	line with those of the Jesuits: 
	
		
		“this means consisted mainly in the 
	introduction of an obligation of unconditional obedience, reminiscent of 
	Loyola’s Constitutions; of a far-reaching mutual surveillance among the 
	membership of the order; and a kind of auricular confession, which every 
	inferior had to make to his superior.”
	
	
	All of this surveillance and confession were fed back to the Jesuits from 
	the very people who were supposed to be against them. 
	
	 
	
	How better to find out 
	what was in the mind of the opposition than to be the opposition? This is a 
	standard double ploy utilised for centuries by the secret services of all 
	religions and states. After all, it is the very reason for the double 0’s on 
	James Bond’s code name.
	
	They even fed the anti-Semitic rhetoric, which suited the Catholic Church 
	down to the ground.
	
	Through associations with the Freemasons, the Jesuits managed to get 
	information from and influence to the Freemasons of the globe. Just how much 
	influence the Illuminati finally had (or have) is unknown - that is the idea 
	of secrecy. But what can be seen is that following Weishaupt’s amazing 
	creation, out of the order of a much older institution, we suddenly have 
	several worldwide revolutions and the balance of powers shifting like never 
	before. 
	
	 
	
	However, even though Weishaupt and his close friend Zwack were 
	banished and never seen again, there can be nothing read into this. It could 
	be that they were simply rewarded with a long holiday out of the way, or 
	were, as some believe, sent to Saxe-Coburg and the Netherlands to start the 
	whole thing again.
	
	There are older links for the Illuminati though that stretch right back into 
	the realm of Afghanistan. This link is with the Roshaniya or 
	Illuminated/Enlightened Ones, and reference to them comes from the House of 
	Wisdom in Cairo - a veritable fount of esoteric knowledge predating the 
	Roshaniya by hundreds of years.
	
	Again, initiation and ritual match up between the Roshaniya and others such 
	as the Muslim Assassins, who influenced the Templars and hence Christianity, 
	Freemasonry, and so on.
	
	The earliest leader we know of is Bayezid Ansari, who claimed descent from 
	the “helpers” of Mohammed. Who exactly these “helpers” were nobody knows; 
	suffice to say their existence in helping Mohammed escape Mecca pinpoints 
	them in space and time, if nothing else.
	
	It is claimed that Bayezid was indoctrinated by the Ismailis - themselves 
	close to the Assassins and having “hidden lodges” around the world. These 
	Ismailis came about to protect a great secret of Islam after the Crusades, 
	in much the same manner as the heretical Cathars protected some strange 
	secret knowledge.
	
	It seems that the Ismailis recruited well, as the Illuminated Ones grew 
	fast. Bayezid taught a series of supernatural exercises that were believed 
	to lead to enlightenment and the great secret - an obvious allusion to the 
	fact that the great secret is enlightenment. To obtain this illuminative 
	aspect of the secret, they had to undergo the usual meditation and fasting 
	called the khilwat - silence. 
	
	 
	
	Using merchants and soldiers, Bayezid 
	eventually spread his message across the world by word of mouth, and those 
	Gnostics and Mystics who heard the message already understood the secret of 
	illumination. Eventually Bayezid, who was now known as Pir-I-Roshan (sage of 
	illumination) founded a great city at Hashtnagar with the message of human 
	fulfillment emanating from its center. 
	
	 
	
	It was understood that utilization of 
	the human mind, in the enlightened aspect, could bring about wonders.
	
	Eventually Bayezid died and his sons as successors were not really up to the 
	job. However, only 40 years after the last leader of the illuminate ones 
	died, Weishaupt started his Illuminati. 
	
	 
	
	As Arkon Daraul says in Secret 
	Societies:
	
		
		Coincidences of date and beliefs connect these Bavarian Illuminati with the 
	Afghan ones, and also with the other cults which called themselves 
	“illuminated.” The beginning of the seventeenth century saw the foundation 
	of the Illuminated Ones of Spain - the Alumbrados, condemned in an edict of 
	the Grand Inquisition in 1623. In 1654 the “Illuminated” Guerinets came into 
	public notice in France.
Documents still extant show several points of resemblance between the German 
	and Central Asian Illuminists: points, which are hard to account for on the 
	grounds of pure coincidence.
	
	
	
	
	Which social order do I sign up for? 
	
	
	Author at military museum, Malta
	 
	
	The Roshaniya have some telling symbols and rituals.
	
	 
	
	The priests were 
	identified with a secret sign in which they crossed over both hands flat on 
	the forehead - the place of the third eye and illumination. The colors of 
	the Roshaniya and the Ismailis were red and white - a color utilized by 
	hundreds of those linked with the ancient enlightenment - especially the 
	Knights Templar, who also had a red cross on their white clothes. The red 
	and white are symbolically important for the enlightenment process, the 
	movement of the sun and moon, and many other elements.
	
	Red and white were also incredibly important in the Far East where we find 
	more Illuminated Ones known popularly as the Triad.
	
	So the Illuminati seem to have emerged from the Catholic Church as a cover 
	name of a secret society supposedly set up to circumnavigate the Church’s 
	authorities.
	
	 
	
	There could be claims that due to the name Illuminati simply 
	meaning “enlightened ones,” it could be that their origin then lies in a 
	great many places. One of these is the Brethren of the Free Spirit in 14th 
	century Europe, but this group can easily be traced back to a pantheistic 
	heretical movement that was quickly suppressed by the Church. And in fact 
	this is the same in all cases.
	
	 
	
	Where alternatives to Weishaupt’s Illuminati 
	are found, they are soon quickly explained away. During its supposedly short 
	life, it gained the membership of many well-known and influential people 
	across Europe, and this is the exact point of the process. It was a method 
	used for centuries, and still used to this day, to find out those who oppose 
	you under the guise of real enlightenment or illumination.
	
	The true history of the Bavarian Illuminati, like that of the Freemasons who 
	erected the Church’s buildings, is now so clouded in mystery that it is 
	almost impossible to decipher.
	
	 
	
	In the past few decades so much madness has 
	been written and subtle links glorified that the popular perception has the 
	Illuminati still in existence today, ruling the world like some sci-fi 
	elite. The fact remains though that the links we do have reveal that the 
	Illuminati were a group created subtly by the Catholic Church to stave off 
	dissent within Europe’s privileged and influential.
	
	 
	
	Regardless of the 
	evidence, however, the Church and even its opponents still maintain that the 
	Illuminati were and even are opponents of the Church and even state, even 
	though there is precious little evidence for this. In those places that the 
	Illuminati have been powerful, the Church is to this day still a big force, 
	and yet in those countries, such as England, that no longer have a powerful 
	Catholic contingency, the Illuminati were not.
	
	 
	
	This is evidence in 
	opposition to the normal belief.
 
	
	
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