Freemasonry, though not a religion, is essentially religious. Most of its legends and allegories are of a sacred nature; much of it is woven into the structure of Christianity. We have learned to consider our own religion as the only inspired one, and this probably accounts for much of the misunderstanding in the world today concerning the place occupied by Freemasonry in the spiritual ethics of our race. A religion is a divinely inspired code of morals. A religious person is one inspired to nobler living by this code. He is identified by the code, which is his source of illumination.

William Wynn Westcott was a renowned masonic scholar heavily involved in the occult revival of the 19th century, and organizations like the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, as well as numerous masonic offshoots. He was also Supreme Magus of the Rosicrucian S.R.I.A. Here he takes his knowledge of Rosicrucian history and offers up a lecture for us students of esoteric lore.

The student of the history of occultism and the esoteric teachings, and even the average listener of current books and magazines, finds many references to "The Rosicrucians," a supposed ancient secret society devoted to the study of occult doctrines and the manifestation of occult powers.

Freemasonry is a fraternity within a fraternity- an outer organization concealing an inner brotherhood of the elect. Before it is possible to intelligently discuss the origin of the Craft, it is necessary, therefore, to establish the existence of these two separate yet interdependent orders, the one visible and the other invisible.

Writing as Magus Incognito William Walker Atkinson explores the Seven Aphorism of the Rosicrucian doctrine. These traditions emphasize the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment and personal transformation through the understanding of hidden truths and the transmutation of the self. He describes the path of the Rosicrucian initiate: a journey of self-discovery, spiritual development, and the attainment of higher states of consciousness.