What is Hermeticism ?

Hermeticism is a tradition rooted in a body of Alexandrian Greek writings on theology, philosophy, and science attributed to Hermes Trismegistus 2. Etymologically associated with culture, intelligence, and the preservation of civilization 2, Hermetic philosophy sought to explain natural phenomena through the chemical principles of salt, sulphur, and mercury 2. Over time, alchemy and astrology were engrafted onto Hermeticism proper, directly influencing the emergence of the Rosicrucian movement 23.

In Craft legend, Hermes Trismegistus was adopted as a central figure in the traditional history of the building art. Medieval operative masons drew knowledge of him from Ranulf Higden’s Polychronicon, incorporating his memory into early manuscript charges such as the Cooke Manuscript 2. Legendary accounts, including the York Constitutions, attributed to him the foundation of the Hermetic art and credited him with bringing the custom of communicating by signs to Egypt 2. Albert C. Mackey maintains, however, that despite these legendary references, the medieval Freemasons were practical builders rather than occultists or Hermetic practitioners 2.

In the Scottish Rite, Albert Pike interprets Hermes as an ancient Egyptian priest and legislator who established the sacred Mysteries 1. Pike holds that Hermes veiled high sacerdotal arts—including alchemy, astrology, and secret sciences—behind symbols, enigmas, and hieroglyphics, communicating them only to selected initiates under strict oaths of secrecy 1.

By the eighteenth century, a formal severance existed between English Freemasonry and Hermeticism 3. Nevertheless, Hermetic concepts periodically re-entered Masonic structures through specialized high degrees and Rites, such as Pernetty's Hermetic Rite 2.