The Life and Thoughts of Manly Palmer Hall
Manly Palmer Hall is mystic and philosopher who gave more than 8,000 speeches worldwide on subjects related to philosophy, mysticism, comparative religion, astrology and related subjects. Aside from his speeches, he also wrote more than 150 books which usually contain collection of essays and insights on various topics related to his expertise. Although raised in America, Manly Palmer Hall was born in Canada. He grew up under the care of his maternal grandmother on Sioux Falls, South Dakota. After her grandmother died when he was 16, he transferred to California where he honed his skills in public speaking.
Early in his teens, his expertise on the mystic and symbolism is already apparent. He became a minister for The Church of the People in his early 20s because of his increasing popularity as a speaker on the mysticism. He gained benefactors that would support his travel around the world so that he can provide additional insight on the subject.
Much of Hall’s work is preserved through Philosophical Research Society (PRS). Hall established the group in 1934 and they focus on the metaphysics, the occult and mythology. The group’s headquarters is located in Los Angeles, California and the structure is declared an important historical structure because of Hall’s work. He is acknowledged as an expert in Masonic subject that he received the highest honor of the society.
Secret Teachings of All Ages
The testament for Hall’s expertise on the subject was the book he published when he was just 27 years old. Properly titled “The Secret Teachings of All Ages: An Encyclopedic Outline of Masonic, Hermetic, Qabbalistic and Rosicrucian Symbolical Philosophy” it is considered the definitive study which still holds relevance to this day. Hall spent six years researching for the book and has to seek out financial support in order to publish the book. Because of his popularity as a speaker on the subject, he already had 1,000 preorders of the book. He ended up making 1,200 copies on the first edition of the book.
The book was made after his travels around the world. Because of the funding he received he was able to visit countries in Asia and Europe where major occult and mythologies existed. Through his travelers, he gained understanding of the ancient occult and mythologies as well as how these beliefs relate to modern spiritual experience.
The original copy of the book is hefty with information but can be very challenging to understand for those who are just starting on the subject. Today’s more popular version and still in print is the “reader’s edition” which focuses on the main topics of the book.
Association with Masonry
Manly Palmer Hall only sought active membership on the masonry group in his later years. However, his view on occult, metaphysics and mythology which also covers some topics on masonry has greatly impressed the group. Although he has published the book that made him popular with the Masons in 1928, he only started joining the masons when he became a knight patron on November 1954. It was in 1973 that he received the highest honor of the group referred to as the 33° Mason.
Philosophical Research Society
The success and popularity of his book has prompted additional book with wider audience. Aiming to improve the understanding of the people not only through his speeches, he established the Philosophical Research Society in 1934. The society still strives to this day and they are constantly engaging in research on various subjects often discussed by Hall.
The research society is not only known for their work. They are also known for their collection of literature and significance to the community. The PRS is home to more than 50,000 literatures and they are the authoritative collector of Hall’s works. Every book and article he’s written is stored in PRS. The headquarters of the Philosophical Research Society is also a notable landmark in California. Built specifically for Hall, it was declared as a cultural landmark in California because of the unique architectural design and the group’s significance in various subjects. The building is located in Los Feliz Street and was declared as a landmark on March 1994.
Hall on Wall Street
Hall had a brief career in Wall Street but he considered it as an avenue where he experienced the “outstanding event”. He was able to give his speech on reincarnation with a small group of people in the bank which actually triggered his popularity based on what he said. He was also influenced by the experience of seeing a man taking his life because of the losses made in investment. On that experience, Hall deduced that man is slowly becoming part of a materialistic society or they become part of the system where they must coexist or suffer the consequences. Going what the society expects and using objects as goals is very costly as it ultimately disregards the importance of mind, soul and body.
Because of that experience, he tried to explore humanity which led him to research and countless hours in New York Public library. He found out that information that would discuss humanity in relation to their destiny and even origin is practically simplified. There is no clear explanation on humanity’s destination and those who actually wrote on the subject are not that popular to be included in recommended reading.
The lack of explanation of humanity’s destiny led Hall to writing about the specific subject. The book became popular and he was recognized as one of greatest mystics and philosophers of the 20th century.