Secret History of the World
- Downloads：3508
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-04-17 10:51:44
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Jonathan Black
- ISBN：0857380974
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER The complete history of the world， from the beginning of time to the present day， based on the beliefs and writings of the secret societies。 Jonathan Black examines the end of the world and the coming of the Antichrist - or is he already here？ How will he make himself known and what will become of the world when he does？ - and the end of Time。 Having studied theology and learnt from initiates of all the great secret societies of the world， Jonathan Black has learned that it is possible to reach an altered state of consciousness in which we can see things about the way the world works that hidden from our everyday commonsensical consciousness。 This history shows that by using secret techniques， people such as Leonardo da Vinci， Isaac Newton and George Washington have worked themselves into this altered state - and been able to access supernatural levels of intelligence。 This book will leave you questioning every aspect of your life and spotting hidden messages in the very fabric of society and life itself。 It will open your mind to a new way of living and leave you questioning everything you have been taught - and everything you've taught your children。 Author BiographyJonathan Black is the nom de plume of Mark Booth， who read Philosophy and Theology at Oriel College， Oxford and who has worked in publishing for over twenty years， publishing authors including Auberon Waugh， Derek Jarman， Chris Ryan， Katie Price， Peter Kay and Rod Liddle。 He has also published many of the leading writers in the field of alternative history， including Baigent and Leigh， Graham Hancock， Robert Bauval， Robert Temple， Knight and Lomas， David Ovason， Colin Wilson and David Rohl。 - The Secret History Of The World By Jonathan Black （Paperback）
Reviews
Riad Benguella
，
J'ai lu ce livre comme une introduction à la pensée ésotérique et l'idéalisme。 Ça peut être intéressant de découvrir une pensée alternative pouvant expliquer l'évolution du monde。 Cependant le livre essaie d'aborder beaucoup de choses à la fois qu'il en devient un peu difficile à lire。 J'ai lu ce livre comme une introduction à la pensée ésotérique et l'idéalisme。 Ça peut être intéressant de découvrir une pensée alternative pouvant expliquer l'évolution du monde。 Cependant le livre essaie d'aborder beaucoup de choses à la fois qu'il en devient un peu difficile à lire。 。。。more
Rio
，
Ga berhenti kagum sama pemikiran Jonathan Black dalam bukunya
Carlos
，
Let’s start with the obvious。 I had expected the book to be an account of the many secret societies that have existed throughout the centuries … from a historical reality-based point-of-view。 This was not that。 The most generous way I can approximate what this book turned out to be， would be to describe it as esoteric fanfiction。 Mark Booth （a。k。a。 Jonathan Black） at least starts the book with a disclaimer: let’s pretend the scientific world view is wrong and all those esoteric traditions are ri Let’s start with the obvious。 I had expected the book to be an account of the many secret societies that have existed throughout the centuries … from a historical reality-based point-of-view。 This was not that。 The most generous way I can approximate what this book turned out to be， would be to describe it as esoteric fanfiction。 Mark Booth （a。k。a。 Jonathan Black） at least starts the book with a disclaimer: let’s pretend the scientific world view is wrong and all those esoteric traditions are right。 This could still have yielded an informative book had Booth limited himself to sharing what we know about the claims made by these traditions。 Yet Booth seeks to go further than that and claim to share with the reader the underlying “reality” synthesized from all these different traditions。 At this point the book ceases to serve to communicate any ideas independent of the author since everything becomes his interpretation of the traditions he claims to share with the reader。 Perhaps as can be expected of an esoteric point-of-view everything becomes subject to literal AND figurative interpretations， and generous liberties are taken with the interpretation of any fact。 His “research” allows him to change the dates of events by centuries， claim that what someone wrote is not what they meant and “clarify” previously misleading interpretation。 I will admit that I kept reading out of sheer curiosity and was rewarded with predictions for what the year 4000 and 7000 would bring。 Needless to say I found none of the author’s interpretations persuasive （although I’m not sure he meant to persuade the reader to share his ideas as much as simply laying out how he sees the world）。 While there is a small amount of fun in the way Booth seeks to connect everything with everything else in search of complete esoteric concordance， I can’t say that I found the reading experience worth it。 。。。more
Elle Hartford
，
I read this as part of a broad research project on the history of alchemy。 My review is in two parts:With my historian hat on， I would say that the book is generalizing and overly reductive， and has a hand-wavey approach to dates that made my head hurt （"no no no，" I whispered while reading， banging my forehead on the pages， "why are we now centuries ahead of where we were in the last paragraph？ Is he being misleading on purpose？？"）。 The author is clearly widely read， but this book is in no way I read this as part of a broad research project on the history of alchemy。 My review is in two parts:With my historian hat on， I would say that the book is generalizing and overly reductive， and has a hand-wavey approach to dates that made my head hurt （"no no no，" I whispered while reading， banging my forehead on the pages， "why are we now centuries ahead of where we were in the last paragraph？ Is he being misleading on purpose？？"）。 The author is clearly widely read， but this book is in no way an authoritative history: it's more narrative than fact。 That isn't necessarily a bad thing if you know to expect it， but it needs to be said。 Also， the author struck me as a bit cruel in his descriptions of the scientists & philosophers in his story， which makes the text feel more like gossip than anything else。With my pop culture mystery-lovers hat on， I would say that the book brings up some interesting points， but must be approached with a GRAIN OF SALT。 Many grains， in fact。 It's more an exercise in critical thinking than the tell-all "theory of life， the universe， and everything" that it may appear to be。 。。。more
Ben Panulo
，
Great read and definitely its not a book for everyone。 One has to already be predisposed to this kind of material to be able to enjoy it。 For anyone who doesn't believe in conspiracy theories， I'd say this book is not for you。From the introduction the author does a great job in introducing the subject matter and making his case。 I was hooked。 Great read and definitely its not a book for everyone。 One has to already be predisposed to this kind of material to be able to enjoy it。 For anyone who doesn't believe in conspiracy theories， I'd say this book is not for you。From the introduction the author does a great job in introducing the subject matter and making his case。 I was hooked。 。。。more
Fersa Alaina
，
It takes time to read this one。 Many veiled history that I haven't known， unveiled by this book。 It's that kind of book where you really need time to digest and seek more cause it has more unknown words that you may not expect。 After all， it's great how the writer unsolved everything。 It takes time to read this one。 Many veiled history that I haven't known， unveiled by this book。 It's that kind of book where you really need time to digest and seek more cause it has more unknown words that you may not expect。 After all， it's great how the writer unsolved everything。 。。。more
Ahmad Kobeissi
，
This book is an eye opener。 It expanded our consciousness in ways that help us understand what we are and why we are here。 It's absolutely a must to read for anyone on a spiritual path This book is an eye opener。 It expanded our consciousness in ways that help us understand what we are and why we are here。 It's absolutely a must to read for anyone on a spiritual path 。。。more
Nermin Thompson
，
Writing method isn't simple But lots of interesting stories。 Writing method isn't simple But lots of interesting stories。 。。。more
BadiO
，
One of the best books I've read！ Great。 One of the best books I've read！ Great。 。。。more
Aprianto Nugraha
，
I'm too stoopid for this I'm too stoopid for this 。。。more
Sobia
，
I thought this book would be more about the actual history of the world。 Being over 15 hours long， it should have delved into the key points in history。 However， it related all key important points to mysticism， the cult， and mythology and kept going back to the "esoteric" meaning of the events。Would've just preferred straight forward history。 Although some of his theories were interesting and downright hilarious。 I thought this book would be more about the actual history of the world。 Being over 15 hours long， it should have delved into the key points in history。 However， it related all key important points to mysticism， the cult， and mythology and kept going back to the "esoteric" meaning of the events。Would've just preferred straight forward history。 Although some of his theories were interesting and downright hilarious。 。。。more
Shay Ryder
，
Let’s just say this book has caused me to look at world around us， and think about a little deeper into issues and society。
Nadia Hana Abraham
，
Please do not waste your money and time with this book。 The author’s just venting， going on and on about how the modern scientists aren’t “enlightened” enough compared to some old， unknown， esoteric teachers。 Seems like the author is trying to prove a point while giving away scrambled up facts and histories about several holy books， historical incidents， famous people， etc。 He can’t get his point across clearly too， while he explains things about Saturn， beliefs， modern science， etc， i seriously Please do not waste your money and time with this book。 The author’s just venting， going on and on about how the modern scientists aren’t “enlightened” enough compared to some old， unknown， esoteric teachers。 Seems like the author is trying to prove a point while giving away scrambled up facts and histories about several holy books， historical incidents， famous people， etc。 He can’t get his point across clearly too， while he explains things about Saturn， beliefs， modern science， etc， i seriously have no idea what to make of it。 The author might be obsessed with spiritualism and imagination， and the ideas repressented by the symbolism of incidents， beliefs， etc that he mentioned in this book rather than actually having any concrete historical facts about certain old society， teachings， etc。 The books actually just put a bunch of ideas and symbolism， and the author’s perspectives on certain things， hoping that it would actually make sense to others。 。。。more
Chris Kabalan
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I have been reading reviews for a while， and yes i agree a lot of what the author says is senseless especially when he repeats words like "occult" and whatnot without referring to anything specific at all。 Nearly everything spoken of is unsepecific， and till now I do not know what he means by the spirit of the moon or the stars and all that。A lot of claims are ridiculous， but imo this book serves to show the general progression of consciousness through time， in addition to providing important na I have been reading reviews for a while， and yes i agree a lot of what the author says is senseless especially when he repeats words like "occult" and whatnot without referring to anything specific at all。 Nearly everything spoken of is unsepecific， and till now I do not know what he means by the spirit of the moon or the stars and all that。A lot of claims are ridiculous， but imo this book serves to show the general progression of consciousness through time， in addition to providing important names and intellectual figures involved in this progression。 I don't believe most of the information in the book， but at least I have been introduced to a lot of intellectual history。I would reccomend skimming through the first few chapters until the author arrives to around the middle ages。 Until then he floats around a seemingly deep but really a broad and unsepcific history of how people evolved from vegetables or fish， and the importance of astrology which seems to provide dates for certain events but nothing else as mentioned in the book， and all of that in an attempt to sound intellectual but really it freaks me out how childish this attempt is。 Spoiler: One of the main contradictions in this book is how idealism of portrayed as humanity's salvation， while materialism its doom。 Then the author says Francis Bacon provided a lot for the progression of consciousness through objectivity and the foundation of science。 After that， the author rants on how materialism will cause the end of spiritualism and mankind。 Then how is Bacon a benefactor， when all he did was accelerate the coming of doom？ This stance against science reminds of a way to appeal to the uninformed reader looking for the thrill of secret societies， the reader that is against any and all conventional wisdom and never "goes with the flow" or whatever。 What I have learned about secret societies is how to spell their names， according to the book。 Not so much a secret history book， than a unconvincing tale in its first half and a bunch of "important looking names and words" in the second half。 。。。more
Charles London
，
Very interesting。
S
，
It’s alright。 It really did go through a lot of history but it brings up a lot of dead ends for no reason。 As soon as something becomes interesting it stops talking about it。 He blazes through so many things that it’s like you’re not really learning anything at all。 It’s like being talked at by an old man。 An old man that likes conspiracies and the occult。 Which is really cool but also only interesting in smaller direct quantities。
Leah Brown
，
Listen i want my money back！！！！！ Don't waste your time reading it it takes 50 pages telling you how to get ready for the book！ Who does that？ And I felt I wasn't AT ALL learning！ There is a big problem with this book。 Also did anyone else feel this book was bias？ Listen i want my money back！！！！！ Don't waste your time reading it it takes 50 pages telling you how to get ready for the book！ Who does that？ And I felt I wasn't AT ALL learning！ There is a big problem with this book。 Also did anyone else feel this book was bias？ 。。。more
Kingsley
，
First DNF in nearly a decade。got about 60% through this claptrap and gave up。
Jon Kim Seu
，
Bought this book taking a total shot in the dark， thinking it was gonna be JUST about secret societies。 Instead it took me on a journey， Thru everything ， although only a little sample of everything， you can't just load up on one item in the buffet and expect to enjoy the rest the same。 Keep a open mind， and keep in mind this is the authors perception on everything， you don't have to agree with him， and you can have your own version。 Bought this book taking a total shot in the dark， thinking it was gonna be JUST about secret societies。 Instead it took me on a journey， Thru everything ， although only a little sample of everything， you can't just load up on one item in the buffet and expect to enjoy the rest the same。 Keep a open mind， and keep in mind this is the authors perception on everything， you don't have to agree with him， and you can have your own version。 。。。more
Zahra Johnston
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 A solid read with a plethora of future reading insights。 I think this book misrepresents， or maybe hits the nail on the head， when it comes to teaching its reader ‘The Secret History of the World’。 The reader does not find out the true course of history or what the secret societies believe （which I was intrigued by and hoping it would）， however， this book teaches of the role of consciousness in our evolution。 Pure theological genius。 It also includes great detail into works of other writers and A solid read with a plethora of future reading insights。 I think this book misrepresents， or maybe hits the nail on the head， when it comes to teaching its reader ‘The Secret History of the World’。 The reader does not find out the true course of history or what the secret societies believe （which I was intrigued by and hoping it would）， however， this book teaches of the role of consciousness in our evolution。 Pure theological genius。 It also includes great detail into works of other writers and artists - leading me to create a list of further readings （it has really sent me into a rabbit hole of discovery）。 。。。more
Yaqeen Alkhanaizi
，
4/5 because it is highly controversial。The book can sound insulting and corrupt at times。 Still， I think it is good to expose oneself to different points of view and for me it has only deepened my believes in Islamic teachings and stories mentioned in the Koran， especially since a lot of them are mentioned in this book。I don’t think this book is for everyone though， it is one of those life-changing books and if you don’t have a solid faith， you might end up down a rabbit hole。
Abraham Kemper
，
Great images coupled with good info that’s slightly marred by an idealist’s polemic narrative。 Although Booth presents different movements chronologically， his way about blending fantasy with myth， in attempts to connect literally every religion， is a lil hokey， and I’m perennialist at heart。
Nina
，
2 za trud。 Ni jednu tajnu nisam pronašla u ovoj knjizi
Chris Esposo
，
tThis book is very unique among the kind of books I usually read。 The author， Mark Booth， states that he was a potential inductee to a “secret society” and learned much of what is commonly known as “esoterica”。 If you’ve ever walked through a physical bookstore， this is often the section with large leather bound books that look like the Necronomicon， with stylized images of the sun， an all-seeing eye， and other vague and/or religious symbology on the covers。 Personally， I view it all as bunk。 Ho tThis book is very unique among the kind of books I usually read。 The author， Mark Booth， states that he was a potential inductee to a “secret society” and learned much of what is commonly known as “esoterica”。 If you’ve ever walked through a physical bookstore， this is often the section with large leather bound books that look like the Necronomicon， with stylized images of the sun， an all-seeing eye， and other vague and/or religious symbology on the covers。 Personally， I view it all as bunk。 However， recently， I’ve been told to expand my horizon， so here I am， and I’m glad I’ve read it， as it was an enjoyable read， from a certain point of view。 To be clear， I still don’t believe much （or any？） of what is recounted in this text as literal truth。 However， even though it’s classified as “non-fiction” it makes a wonderful yarn especially for those who are looking to do some creative fiction writing of their own， the notions outlined here， the “secret history” of the world， a alternative recounting of both religious and mythological tales， connected to historical events， is a well-done。 To this point， although I’m not a reader of the manga/anime “Berserk”， I know enough of it’s setting to see very stark/obvious connections with the world crafted by the author of that work， with the esoteric lore recounted here， and for those who may read this sort of fiction （in retrospect， after reading this book， much of dark-fantasy anime/manga leverages heavily from Western esoterica）， reading this book may provide insights into the narrative plot and world building of their favorite works。 The veracity of the information notwithstanding， the text recounts the “secret history” of the world， from the distant prehistory， before even the material world was made， and ends roughly at the time of the post-enlightenment （though more modern events are occasionally mentioned， much of the ‘mass’ of the narrative ends at what classical historians may label， ‘the age of reason’ at the birth of science）。 The text connects the mythologies of much of “Pagan Europe” and the creation myths of the Abrahamic religions， with the Egyptian and other “near eastern” heritages together in a compelling amalgam， that is mostly internally-consistent， and because of this consistency， ex-facie ‘believable’ （though not believable in the critical-thinking/scientific standpoint）。 The “big idea” is simple， prior to the material world， there was a world of ideas， and even after creation， there was an extended period where “ideas” and the fantastical were more “real” than the material world。 This corresponds with what classical historians may refer to as the “age of myth”。 This era of prehistory is often the setting of much of world mythology， from Greeks to Babylon， and the mythologies of China and the Americas （though not much is covered on these later two as again， the text is firmly centered on connecting Mesoptonian and Mediterranian mythologies within the esoteric framework）。 Within this setting， the book focuses on how “secret” societies， have helped shaped and guide humans throughout the era of prehistory。 This notion is actually quite common in both conspiracy theories， and fiction that are based on those theories， so it’s nothing new。 What this book does well though is connect those nodes across apparently disconnected mythologies （e。g。 Osiris to Jesus say）， and “explains” the sudden appearance of various philosophers and religious figures across the globe within the framework of “reincarnation” and “in-material beings”， so that the explanation of ‘similar’ sounding mythologies from Zoroastrianism， Christianity， and classical Egyptian religions is unified as the same “being” re-entering the material world to bring about enlightenment etc。） tThe narrative seamlessly weaves in actual history with this narrative which is how I believe it can seem so “real” to the less discriminating mind。 To be sure， all of this is purely “belief” if such a “plane of existence” did exist， I could not prove it， unless it directly manifested itself。 Yet， given the parsimony of science， one would not assume such a place existed unless that assumption was needed to explain observations in the material world。 And in this case， the apparent “hidden” connections between religious beliefs has a much more mundane explanation in that similarities are a consequence of information transmission between groups， which would include stories and mythologies， and that overtime these received mythologies would become adapted to the local environment （perhaps a “evolution” of information via the network of trade in antiquity？）。tWe’ve already witnessed such phenomena in the relatively recent era during the time of Constantine at the beginning of the formal Catholic church as a state institution of late Imperial Rome in the 3rd and 4th centuries CE， when the dogmas of the Christian canon were “unified” with the dogmas of the previously pagan state religions， which accounts for things like the Easter and Christmas holidays of Western Christianity coinciding with much older pagan holidays like the Winter solstice。 However， clearly to the imaginative mind， this more mundane sociological explanation of inter-civilizational similarities is less desirable than something like the “esoteric” explanation。 The text also has an alternative recounting of birth of the Catholic church， and admittedly， I was more captivated by it as a story， than my rational deconstruction of those events。 tMy personal interest in learning more about these esoteric traditions， and it’s associated lores， has more to do with its connections with the enlightenment。 As more modern historians have begun to circulate in recent books， the enlightenment should be seen less as a sudden flouring of rationality in Europe and more as a natural extension of the “systems thinking” of a more superstitious age， finding expression in the minds of thinkers who sought to prove the truth of those ideas。 Isaac Newton （who is mentioned a few times in this text）， himself is now known as “the last Wizard”， because although he is rightfully known for his work on the calculus， his optics， and mechanics （the so-called “system of the world”）， what was less known until a decade aga outside of a small group of Newton scholars， is that these works were just a subset of the corpus of work he was generating， and much of this and his other works were aiming to prove esoteric theories of nature， and to harness that knowledge to manipulate matter。 tSo， in a way， esoterica itself can be viewed as a sort of ‘proto-science’ since not only is it a cohesive body of mythology/lore， but it introduces the notion that there is a “system’ that can be accessed/leveraged to bring about certain effects。 This systems-thinking is critical for the birth of both natural philosophy， and it’s successor， the scientific worldview。 tThis book would be interesting to 3 broad readers: 1。 Those who， like myself， are interested in the history of scientific thought， but not as a literal document， but as a kind of ‘oral retelling” of lore 2。 Those who are interested in less-known religious traditions which intersect and/or derive from the Abrahamaic faiths， like the Kabbahlistic and Masonic sets of thought/lore 3。 Those who are interested in certain kinds of fantasy fanfiction and want a reference book for story ideation。 This later group could include both aspiring authors or something less ambitious （say a DM for a D&D pen/paper RPG）。 tWhatever your perspective， coming at this book with an open mind may surprise you as it is at the very least entertaining， and it makes you think in a way you may not be accustomed too。 I find this sort of novelty to be the spice of life， and in that light， I highly recommend this text as a unique kind of “nonfiction”。 。。。more
Benjamin
，
Scatterings of esoteric fun facts throughout history intertwined with the babbling of a mad man Also some completely made up stuff， I think （Miaotse？ Marx was a freemason？？）Really I'd say a 2。5 Scatterings of esoteric fun facts throughout history intertwined with the babbling of a mad man Also some completely made up stuff， I think （Miaotse？ Marx was a freemason？？）Really I'd say a 2。5 。。。more
JL Ibarra
，
Un libro ilustrado y bien documentado， con una redacción reveladora sobre temas de interés ocultos， magia y secretos reveladores。Recomendado para personas amantes e investigadoras de lo mágico， de lo oculto y de los secretos poco contados。
Chris Dietzel
，
A great quote by Haruki Murakami goes， “If you only read the books that everyone else is reading， you can only think what everyone else is thinking。” The Secret History of the World is a perfect example of the value of reading books outside the norm。 The vast majority of people in this world are taught a set of religious beliefs， historic facts， etc。 as children and then go on believing them for the rest of their lives。 Jonathan Black presents a book that allows readers to look at the world in a A great quote by Haruki Murakami goes， “If you only read the books that everyone else is reading， you can only think what everyone else is thinking。” The Secret History of the World is a perfect example of the value of reading books outside the norm。 The vast majority of people in this world are taught a set of religious beliefs， historic facts， etc。 as children and then go on believing them for the rest of their lives。 Jonathan Black presents a book that allows readers to look at the world in a different light。 The best books are the ones that get you to see the world differently。 In that regard， this book is excellent。 Books like this give you alternate perspectives， and there is a lot of value in that， regardless of whether you agree with them or not。 。。。more
May0Marie
，
It was someone on acid trying to weave together the bible and ancient mythology。。。。
Elliot Brent
，
It's a big world out here， and I understand that not everybody believes the same storylines。 This book emphasizes that。 I believe in the introduction of the book， before the core content， he makes known that this information he discloses is a bit bizarre: but to not take it his words， but as the beliefs of those whom history remembers， the great men of the past who we exalt to our memories of some sort of excellence。 It's a cool book， but I am one who is grounded in my beliefs。 For one who's sea It's a big world out here， and I understand that not everybody believes the same storylines。 This book emphasizes that。 I believe in the introduction of the book， before the core content， he makes known that this information he discloses is a bit bizarre: but to not take it his words， but as the beliefs of those whom history remembers， the great men of the past who we exalt to our memories of some sort of excellence。 It's a cool book， but I am one who is grounded in my beliefs。 For one who's searching in their belief， I do not recommend。 。。。more
Arum Prafitri
，