What Osama bin Laden Did Not (Want to) Know: Manly Palmer Hall, Islam, and Conspiracism

A copy of The Secret Teachings of All Ages (1928) by Manly Palmer Hall (1901–1990) was listed among the books possessed by Osama bin Laden (1957–2011) in his last lodgings. The prolific Canadian‐born, US‐American author advanced a positive interpretation of Islam within an esotericist worldview. By...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of religious history Vol. 44; no. 1; pp. 49 - 70
Main Author Bigliardi, Stefano
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Melbourne John Wiley and Sons Australia, Ltd 01.03.2020
Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Subjects
Bin Laden, Osama
Esotericism
Islam
Muslims
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Summary:A copy of The Secret Teachings of All Ages (1928) by Manly Palmer Hall (1901–1990) was listed among the books possessed by Osama bin Laden (1957–2011) in his last lodgings. The prolific Canadian‐born, US‐American author advanced a positive interpretation of Islam within an esotericist worldview. By meticulously scrutinising primary sources, this article aims at mapping his conception of Islam and understanding its role within Hall's interpretation of history. Furthermore, drawing upon scholarly discussions of conspiracism, as well as on examinations of bin Laden's figure and messages, this article assesses whether Hall can be described as a conspiracist author and whether his interpretation of history and Islam could have fascinated the founder of Al Qaeda.
ISSN:0022-4227
1467-9809
DOI:10.1111/1467-9809.12648