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| Gabriel Moulin, 1907. |
I had an opportunity to watch
The Order of Death (Alex Jones' documentary on the Bohemian Grove) the other night. It's a deft piece of propaganda and like all propaganda, it's filled with an unfortunate bevy of distortions and half-truths, if not outright lies.
Bohemian Grove is a campground in northern California owned by the
Bohemian Club, a men's social club founded in San Francisco in 1872. Initially membership included journalists and artists, but it soon accepted businessman into its ranks. Today the club holds an annual gathering at the Grove which includes a largely GOP crowd, but includes a smattering of liberals, too. This is not some conspiracy theorist's wild imaginings. Guests have included the likes of Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Kissinger, George Shultz, Helmut Kohl, Colin Powell. The list goes on. Not only such well-known figures but a long list of power players in industries from petrochemical and media to defense. Celebrities are involved. Harry Shearer and Steve Miller, of all people, are members. So are Mickey Hart and Bob Weir, formerly of the Grateful Dead.
But what do they do? Given the highly secretive nature of the proceedings, a lot of what goes down is fairly well-known. (Tellingly, the Patron Saint of the Club is John of Nepomuk, who was martyred by the King of Bohemia for refusing to divulge secrets the Queen revealed to him at confessional; one of his attributes is an angel holding its finger over its lips in the universal gesture of silence and at least one of the BG camps is adorned with this very image). It would appear that revelry and heavy drinking are involved, male bonding, pissing in the woods, etc. A series of "
Lakeside Talks" are held, where members or special guests weigh in on policy issues of the day. Theatrical productions are performed. Perhaps most famous is the "
Cremation of Care" ceremony. The Cremation of Care is a kind of skit where members dressed in red and black hooded robes carry a coffin to the foot of a large stone effigy of an owl and set it alight. Inside the coffin is a human figure called "Dull Care". According to
an article that appeared in Spy Magazine, club literature "boasts that the Cremation of Care ceremony derives from Druid rites, medieval Christian liturgy, the Book of Common Prayer, Shakespearean drama and nineteenth-century American lodge rites." (This
photo archive of images from 1909 has lots of images from the theatrical productions).
Alex Jones actually walked right into the camp and from a hidden vantage point filmed the goings on. As the coffin is set alight, howls and screams come out from the owl and fireworks shoot forth from behind its head . Strange hi-jinks for anyone, let alone the power elite.
The prospect of a bunch of influential men gathering in secret among the redwoods to discuss foreign and domestic policy matters raises a series of valid questions, the foremost of which regards the appropriateness of such an arrangement in a free and open, democratic society. To what extent policy is hatched here, if at all, is a big unknown. Policy is hammered out in Congress, to be sure, and these kinds of conclaves are carried out all over Washington in various think tanks and consortia. Which doesn't put this in perspective at all. More to the point is to what extent these parallel policy structures subvert the democratic process of free and open discussion. On one hand the Constitution guarantees the freedom of like-minded men to gather and discuss the problems of the day. This is what political parties are all about, after all. But the Grove smacks of something beyond that. It doesn't help that this boys' club burns coffins before an enormous owl.
Carthage Redux
One big problem with Jones' documentary is that he links the Cremation of Care ritual to the continuation of Molech worship. Without any ado whatsoever he pronounces this as fact. Molech was a Semitic deity and research supports the idea that indeed, human and animal sacrifice was performed in the god's honor. But this is not a proven fact; the extent of these sacrifices remains unsettled and even the very existence of human sacrifice remains debatable. Yet there is
no indication that Molech was associated with an owl. None at all. There are some representations of the Molech idol which bear a passing resemblance to our owl, but these are the stylings of much later fabulists and in any event, do not represent owls but bulls. So, unless Jones has access to some codices the experts are not aware off, this link to Molech seems to originate from somewhere in his nether region; in other words, he's merely pulled it out of his ass and stated it as fact.
So, what of it? Child sacrifice is a handy metaphor for warmongers, but stating it as fact, without hint of irony or satire, is merely wrong. Jones' choice here involves either deliberate lies, blind prejudice or ignorance.
If the owl is not Molech, what does it represent? I think it's a safe bet to say it represents wisdom. In his book on the Illuminati, (
Perfectibilists), Terry Melanson points out that in the Bohemian Club library there is an owl statue which is an exact replica of one originally discovered in the temple of Pallas Athena on the Acropolis. Like her Roman counterpart Minerva, she is often pictured with an owl signifying wisdom. Melanson, in a footnote, notes that Jones seems to have been the first person to make the claim that the owl is Molech. If so, it's pretty much standard folklore now. The Internet conspiracy sites repeat it
ad nauseum. Which makes his distortions all the more frustrating. It's almost comical how people twist the historical evidence to fit their beliefs; I saw one site where a guy pointed out to another that there is no historical connection between the owl and Molech. The first guy responded that it wasn't an owl, but a devil with horns. Bohos merely called it an owl! Given the prevalence of owl images on everything associated with the Club, from napkins to programs to its official seal, this makes it unlikely.
Melanson also proposes that the Club's motto "Weaving spiders come not here", along with the owl, refer to the myth of Arachne and Minerva. In this story, Arachne, a skilled weaver, boasts that she can best anyone at the loom, even the goddess Minerva. Minerva, peeved, takes her up on the offer and a contest ensues. Arachne indeed demonstrates remarkable skill, along with remarkable arrogance. Minerva, angered by Arachne's impiety, touches the latter's head and makes her feel shame, whereupon Arachne runs off and hangs herself. Feeling pity, she brings Arachne back to life and transforms her into a spider to recall for all time this moral lesson.
Melanson suggests that for the BC, this might be directed towards outsiders, or weaving spiders; that is to say it's a warning to mere mortals who would presume to elevate themselves to the status of the god-like Bohemians. Maybe so. But isn't it also possible that the motto is directed towards the members themselves, as a reminder of humility? Meaning that for all their worldly power and riches, they should not themselves assume they are gods among men. I advocate neither interpretation, but propose a plausible alternative to demonstrate that we are all speculating based on limited information from a discrete organization. A far cry from fact.
For a more thorough and
fact-based interpretation of the owl symbolism, see Melanson's
Owl of Wisdom. I was especially delighted to learn of the Schlarrafia, a social club founded in Prague (Bohemia) in 1859 by artists and actors, much like the Bohemian Club. Their symbol: an owl representing wisdom. A branch existed in San Francisco as early as 1884 (BC founded in 1879) and the club had a similar philosophy of leaving "Dull Care" behind them when they met:
"As soon as he [the Schlaraffian] enters a 'castle' [or 'Temple'] and comes under the rule of Uhu, the great horned owl of Minerva,
he is expected to forget all foolish things of everyday life."
This is why I love Terry's work. I've been visiting BC-related websites for the past few days and this group wasn't even mentioned. I go there in search of a link for
Perfectibilists and land on this. Great stuff, but it's getting me away from the intention of this post.
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| Bohemian Grove Seal, photo by Wikipedia User "Stef48" |
Another thing which would support the idea that this represents wisdom (dare I say "enlightenment" or "illumination"), is that the owl was erected in the 1920's to replace an earlier sculpture. Here's the
National Park Service:
I don't think the Bohos are secret Buddhists, they just get their wisdom symbols from wherever they see fit
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Finally, I have also seen some Bohemian Grove images which feature both the owl and a skull, in this example crowned. Some will automatically read this in a sinister light, but, like many such images, might it not be read as a symbol of the transience of life, another reminder to the mighty that their time too, will pass?
Still, it's hard not to see occult meanderings when pictures like another one floating about the internets pop up. This image from 1915 is worth reproducing here because it's such an eye popper. The caption explains: "To purge himself of worldly concerns, a member of the elite Bohemian Club participated in a 1915 Cremation of Care ceremony—complete with candles and a robed and hooded comrade to guide him."
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| Gabriel Moulin, 1915. Cremation of Care Ceremony; photo shamelessly hustled from National Geographic. |
So, the Cremation of Care always signified the same thing, even as the ceremony became burning an effigy of Dull Care. I'm speculating here, but perhaps in this image the man is himself Dull Care. The shedding of worldly concerns is necessary because life is transitory--as symbolized in the 1909 Annal--and one must take the time to eat, drink and be merry. But I can easily see why people interpret this as some kind of occult death and rebirth ritual, maybe even something borrowed from those aforementioned "American lodge rites." (We have compiled an
extensive and certainly incomplete list of instances where the phrase "Dull Care" is used, from antiquity to the 20th century; I feel that the phrase's widespread use de-mystifies it....and the rite).
I'd like to take this opportunity to present another Moulin photograph from 1909, representing what I assume to be one of the Grove plays. While the photo above is widely circulated on Christian websites, the following is not, because it does not fit the narrative of Molechian subversion. Actually, given their logic, one could merely state as fact that this is a mockery of the Cross and it would be accepted and widely circulated as such. I can't say it
isn't a mockery of the Cross, but my intuition and common sense tell me that it's exactly what it appears to be: a play portraying a group of knights, perhaps crusaders or grail-seekers, glorifying in a Christian revelation. Several other pictures from this play also reveal Christian symbolism. Which is exactly why they're not reproduced, even though other pictures from the same archive are. So, standard fare really: deception and selective evidence from the self-righteous.
Enter the Masons
Jones lost me in his documentary at the very end, where his proof linking this to a greater conspiracy consists of growling things like "Skull and Bones, KKK, New World Order, Freemasons" over and over. Hey, they're mentioned in the same breath, they must be linked! Jones' attack on Freemasonry is old hat and particularly weak. He goes off on a rant about how the Freemasons and the KKK are all arms of the same monster. Along the way he spouts at least two untruths.
The first involves the invocation,
a propos of nothing, of Albert Pike, who Jones refers to as chief Freemason of
the whole wide world! Well, anyone who knows anything about Masonry knows this is bullshit. There are several strains of Freemasonry in the world, the biggest of which are sometimes referred to as Blue (Anglo-Saxon) and Red (Continental/French) Masonry. Red Masonic Lodges are under the authority of Grand Orients; blues under Grand Lodges. Neither recognizes the authority of the other. Among Blue Lodges, each country has its own Grand Lodge and each U.S. state has it's own Grand Lodge, none with authority over another. To put it simply, no single person can have authority over two Grand Lodges, let alone
all of them. Pike wasn't head of world Masonry, not even U.S. Masonry--because it doesn't exist as a single body. He
was the Supreme Commander of the Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite. Not all of the Scottish Rite, mind you; there is a Northern Jurisdiction and these are two separate and independent bodies. Pike was a clever dick and a colorful figure, resting head of the Southern Jurisdiction for a long time, but his authority finished there.
So anyone who tells you otherwise is either misinformed or lying. I suppose deluded and blinded by prejudice are acceptable other options.
Another distortion is that Pike "founded" the KKK. Jones uses this exact phrase. See the choices above. There is absolutely no iron-clad proof Pike was even in the KKK. There were some writers who claimed this to be true, but there are problems with these claims. The arguments can be seen
here, and I will leave you to decide. He
may have been a member at some point, but this "
may have been a member" is a far cry from saying he founded the organization. Alex Jones has done his research so he cannot be unaware that his claim is debatable; to present it as anything otherwise is a deliberate deception.
What's so odious about this is that he's using deceit and lies while bombastically denouncing those who use deception and lies to maintain power and control. And Bohemian Grove is full off that monkey business. Yet when it's so cavalierly linked to non-existent bugbears like Molech cults, Jones does a disservice and one might rightly begin to wonder, like any good paranoid, if he himself is a disinformation specialist, or at least a mere huckster in search of coin. Nothing sells like Satanic cults among the elite, ignoring the very real abuses of power and public trust they perpetrate on a day to day basis.
Some of those Bohemian Grove images are pretty weird, and along with other elite groupings like Skull and Bones, the death imagery is startling to the contemporary eye. But mightn't this death imagery reflect the much more tenuous relationship to the land of the living mankind endured during the time when these groups were created? Jumping to conclusions based on nothing at all gets us nowhere in unraveling the mystery of what it all
really represents....
None of this should be taken as a defense of the Bohemian Club or Albert Pike, mind you. I'm just sick of looking for useful info on the Internet and coming up with the same garbled cut and pasted bullshit, based on one man's self-serving untruths, repeated ad nauseum until one can no longer approach the topic without the taint of imbeciles, religious fanatics, the lazy and the mad.
