The Occult Symbolism of The Movie Sherlock Holmes

2017616 TheOccultSymbolismoftheMovieSherlockHolmes
The Occult Symbolism of Sherlock Holmes

February 8, 2010
The latest Hollywood blockbuster Sherlock Holmes revolves around occult murders and world conspiracies.
The movie is riddled with occult symbols and allusions to a New Order. Well look at the history of Sherlock
Holmes, the origins of the symbols found within the movie and its meaning in todays context.
https://vigilantcitizen.com/moviesandtv/theoccultsymbolismofthemoviesherlockholmes/ 1/14
Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyles stories, the movie Sherlock Holmes brings back to life the famous
detective of the nineteen century. The plot revolves around murders that are apparently connected with
occult rituals. This leads Sherlock into the mysterious world of secret societies and political conspiracies.
Doyles works contained some vague references to occultism or Freemasonry; the movie, however, focuses
solely around those themes and incorporates elements that are very relevant in todays context: a New
World Order lead by secret societies.
Although no real life secret society are actually mentioned, numerous symbols and references are peppered
throughout the movie taken directly from Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism or the Illuminati. Cleverly embedded
into the scenes and never really explained, those symbols can almost be considered hints to insiders
concerning the real inspirations of the movie. Lets look at the Masonic background of the original author of
Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle, and how this inuence has been taken to the next level in the movie.
Arthur Conan Doyle Spiritualist and Freemason

Doyle was born into an Irish Catholic family in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1859. At age eleven, he was sent to a
Jesuit school, Stonyhurst College, in which he was said to have spent ve unhappy and lonely years. After
obtaining his Bachelor of Medicine and Master of Surgery from Edinburgh University, Doyle developed a
great interest for spiritualism . In an article appeared in MQ (the ocial Journal of the United Grand Lodge of
England), Freemason Yasha Beresiner explains Conan Doyles interest for spiritualism and Masonry:
He rst set up a practice with a fellow student Dr Budd, but soon

parted company having been accused of not pulling his weight, and
moved, with his newly wedded wife Louise Hawkins, to Southsea
near Portsmouth in Hampshire where he established himself as an
eye specialist. It was here that between 1885 and 1888 he attended a
number of table turning sittings at the home of General Drayson a
teacher at Greenwich Naval College, who was one of his patients.
These sessions were experimental and Doyle was critical both of the
procedures and the ritual involved, which he called a farce. He also
questioned the intellect of the sitters. But he was hooked. In 1887,
the year he became a freemason, he joined the Society for Psychical
Research, this was a public declaration, as it were, of his interest and
belief in the occult.
It was in this state of mind, exceedingly curious and now seriously

delving into the world of spiritualism, that on the 26th of January
1887 Arthur Conan Doyle was initiated into Freemasonry at the

Phoenix Lodge No 257 in Southsea, Hampshire. He was 27 years
old.
-Yasha Beresiner, Arthur Conan Doyle Spiritualist and Freemason,
MQ, July 2007
It was the Phoenix Lodge no. 257 where Doyle befriended a certain Dr. James Watson, who became the
inspiration for Sherlock Holmes trusty sidekick. Beresiner continues:
It would be logical to presume that Doyle came into Freemasonry

expecting, maybe hoping, to discover elements of the spiritualism
that now occupied his mind. He was certainly well recommended.
His proposer was W. D. King, later Sir William David King, Deputy-
Lieutenant for Hampshire, a most prominent public man in
Portsmouth who was elected Mayor of the borough on four separate
occasions. His seconder was Sir John Brickwood an equally
respected and successful Brewer in the city. Doyle rose rapidly
through the degrees. On 23 February 1887 he was passed to the
second degree and a month later, on 23 March he was made a full-
edged Master Mason.
Ibid
Doyle then resigned from Freemasonry only to rejoin several times during his life. Masonry was sometimes
mentioned in Doyles writings, which were not all focused on Sherlock Holmes. In The Land of Mist,
published in 1926, Doyle describes the character Weatherby:
that is a pompous ass named Weatherby. He is one of those who

wander about on the obscure edges of Masonry, talking with
whispers and reverence on mysteries where no mystery is.
Spiritualism, with its very real and awful mysteries, is, to him, a vulgar
thing because it brought consolation to common folk, but he loves to
read papers on the Palladian Cultus, ancient & accepted Scottish
rites and baphometic gures. Eliphas Levi is his prophet.
Throughout his adventures, Sherlock Holmes (who was not a Mason) has proved to be quite knowledgeable
of Freemasonry, spotting Masonic rings and other clues with ease.
Symbols in the Movie

This analysis wont focus on the actual storyline, but rather on the numerous symbols peppered throughout
the lm. There might be some spoilers in here, though.
Sherlock Holmes contains a great deal of themes and symbols taken directly from todays secret societies.
They are very subtle and rarely explained in the movie, making them almost invisible to everyday viewers. To
educated viewers however, those symbols can easily be recognized and placed into context. Although
some of them are not historically accurate or have been modied to make them ctional, the presence of
those themes are in perfect accord with the unprecedented wave of occult symbolism in mass media today.
So lets take a look at some of them.
Black Magic Ritual
The movie starts off with Sherlock interrupting a Black Magic ritual. A hooded man (Lord Blackwood) is
reciting incantations in front of a woman laid on a sacricial altar. The occult theme of the movie is pretty
much laid out, right from the start.
Order Out of Chaos

In a seemingly trivial scene, a slightly altered on morphine Sherlock plays violin notes to ies in a tube. He
explains to Watson his discovery: when he plays atonal clusters to the ies, they synchronize and start ying
in concentric circles. Thus, using musical theory, he has created order out of chaos.
Ordo ab Chao (which is translated to English to Order Out of Chaos) is probably the most famous Masonic
maxim. Mackeys encyclopedia documents the use of this phrase since 1395 as the ocial motto of the
Ancient Craft Masonry. Ordo ab Chao is now the ocial motto of the highest and honorary degree of
Scottish Rite Masonry, the 33rd degree.
Insignia of the 33rd Degree with the saying Ordo Ab

Chao on top
Some occult researchers claim that the saying refers to the elites propensity to create crises which generate
fear and confusion in the masses (chaos) in order to introduce new policies and laws that are favorable to
them(order). The pice of rsitance would be the creation of a New World Order lead by the occult elite
after a period of generalized chaos, which would be of their creation. In this context, can Sherlocks insects
ying in concentric circles represent the masses hypnotized by the New World Orders atonal notes?
Blackwoods Cell
When Sherlock visits Lord Blackwood at his prison cell, he notices strange engravings on the walls. One of
them stands out:
This symbol of a crucied rose is considered to be the rst symbol representing the Rosicrucian Order, a
hermetic brotherhood dating from the Middle-Ages.
The original symbol of the

Rosicrucian Fraternity was a
hieroglyphic rose crucied
upon a cross. The cross was
often raised upon a three-
stepped Calvary. Manly P.
Hall
Was Lord Blackwood a Rosicrucian?
Rosicrucians, a name assumed by a sect or cabal of hermetical

philosophers ; who arose, as it has been said, or at least became rst
taken notice of in Germany, in the beginning of the fourteenth
century. They bound themselves together by a solemn secret, which
they all swore inviolably to preserve : and obliged themselves, at their
admission into the order, to a strict observance of certain
established rules. They pretended to know all sciences, and chiey
medicine : whereof they published themselves the restorers. They
pretended to be masters of abundance of important secrets, and,
among others, that of the philosophers stone : all which they
armed to have received by tradition from the ancient
Egyptians, Chaldeans, the Magi, and Gymnosophists.
They have been distinguished by several names, accommodated to

the several branches of their doctrine. Because they pretend to
protect the period of human life, by means of certain nostrums, and
even to restore youth, they were called Immortals ; as they pretended
to know all things, they have been called Illuminati; and because they
have made no appearance for several years, unless the sect of
Illuminated which lately started up on the continent derives its origin
from them, they have been called the Invisible Brothers.
Enc. Brit., 3rd Edition, Vol. 16, 1797
Some researchers have claimed that the Rosicrucians had taken over Freemasonry during the beginning of
the 18th century. It has played an important, yet secretive role in the shaping of todays world.
The Lab
When Sherlock and Watson inspect The Dwarfs lab for clues, some interesting symbols are engraved on
the wall.
All-Seeing Eye inside a triangle
The detectives discover that the lab seem to mix advanced science with occultism. Another interesting
symbol is found on a wall.
The Quabbalistic Tree of Life (Sephiroth)
The Tree of the Sephiroth may be considered an invaluable

compendium of the secret philosophy which originally was the spirit
and soul of Chasidism. The Qabbalah is the priceless heritage of
Israel, but each year those who comprehend its true principles
become fewer in number. The Jew of today, if he lacks a realization
of the profundity of his peoples doctrines, is usually permeated with
that most dangerous form of ignorance, modernism, and is prone to
regard the Qabbalah either as an evil to be shunned like the plague or
as a ridiculous superstition which has survived the black magic of
the Dark Ages. Yet without the key which the Qabbalah supplies, the
spiritual mysteries of both the Old and the New Testament must
remain unsolved by Jew and Gentile alike.
The Sephirothic Tree consists of ten globes of luminous splendor

arranged in three vertical columns and connected by 22 channels or

paths. The ten globes are called the Sephiroth and to them are
assigned the numbers i to 10. The three columns are called Mercy
(on the right), Severity (on the left), and, between them, Mildness, as
the reconciling power. The columns may also be said to represent
Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty, which form the triune support of the
universe, for it is written that the foundation of all things is the Three.
The 22 channels are the letters of the Hebrew alphabet and to them
are assigned the major trumps of the Tarot deck of symbolic cards.
Manly P. Hall, Secret Teachings of All Ages
Blackwoods Spellbook
After being summoned by The Order, Sherlock is told that Blackwoods spell book is the key to stop him.
This spell book contains some symbols that might be recognizable to readers of this site.
The creature in the middle looks remarkably like Baphomet.
Eliphas Levis depicition of

Baphomet
Heres the next page of Lord Blackwoods spell book:
This image is heavily inspired by an engraving of French occultist Stanislas de Guaita, which can be found in
the 1897 book La Clef de la Magie Noire (The Key to Black Magic):
De Gaita founded in 1888 the Cabalistic Order of

the Rosicrucians, which is consistent with earlier
references to Rosicrucianism in the movie.
The Order
In Sherlock Holmes, The Order is an occult brotherhood which can easily compared to real world
Freemasonry. It is said in the movie that their secret system has stirred the world to greater good for
centuries, but it can also be used for more nefarious purposes the Dark Arts or practical magic. The Order
has many members in government and police.
Blackwood, a practitioner of Black Magic, takes over The Order by force, claiming that he has a magnicent
purpose: to create a new future, a future ruled by the Brotherhood. Later in the movie, Blackwood says The
new order begins now, which is a reference to the New World Order ushered in by the Illuminati that is said
to be taking place today.
Blackwood taking seat at the Throne of The Order. The pyramid in the
background has an illuminated capstone, which is considered to be the
ultimate Illuminati symbol. See the Great Seal of the USA:
Blackwoods takeover of The Order probably refers to the take over of Freemasonry by German Illuminism
and Rosicrucianism during the 18th century, which drastically changed some of its doctrines and lead to its
worldwide spread.
So, heres the major spoiler: All of this occult, magical stuff turned out to be trickery that Sherlock explained
with logic and science. So, after the viewers are exposed to the symbols and the Brotherhood, they are told
that these things are ction, and even rather ridiculous. This is kind of surprising, considering that director
Guy Richie was married to Qabbalah adept Madonna. Further, the occultism presented in the movie is rather
dark, threatening and borderline satanic, which can encourage viewers to associate everything occult with
evil, which is not the case. This goes in hand with the Hollywood disinformation covered in this article.
In a rather ominous nal scene, Sherlock describes a machine that could exist in 2010 : Imagine a device
able to control anybody simply by saying a command using radiowaves its the future.
HAARP anyone?

The Occult Symbolism of The Movie Sherlock Holmes

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Occult Symbolism of The Movie Sherlock Holmes

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

2017616 TheOccultSymbolismoftheMovieSherlockHolmes

The Occult Symbolism of Sherlock Holmes

Arthur Conan Doyle Spiritualist and Freemason

He rst set up a practice with a fellow student Dr Budd, but soon

It was in this state of mind, exceedingly curious and now seriously

1887 Arthur Conan Doyle was initiated into Freemasonry at the

It would be logical to presume that Doyle came into Freemasonry

that is a pompous ass named Weatherby. He is one of those who

Symbols in the Movie

Black Magic Ritual

Order Out of Chaos

Insignia of the 33rd Degree with the saying Ordo Ab

The original symbol of the

Was Lord Blackwood a Rosicrucian?

Rosicrucians, a name assumed by a sect or cabal of hermetical

They have been distinguished by several names, accommodated to

All-Seeing Eye inside a triangle

The Quabbalistic Tree of Life (Sephiroth)

The Tree of the Sephiroth may be considered an invaluable

The Sephirothic Tree consists of ten globes of luminous splendor

arranged in three vertical columns and connected by 22 channels or

The creature in the middle looks remarkably like Baphomet.

Eliphas Levis depicition of

Heres the next page of Lord Blackwoods spell book:

De Gaita founded in 1888 the Cabalistic Order of

You might also like