The Masonic secret does not lie in hidden knowledge, but in the personal experience of the initiation ritual, which each brother experiences and interprets individually. Through symbols, rituals and inner reflection, a profound realisation emerges that cannot be fully grasped in words and can only be understood through personal experience. This ‘secret’ is therefore not something that can be passed on, but something that each Freemason discovers for himself.

Almost 3,500 members in over 80 lodges belong to the Grand Loge Alpina of Switzerland. In addition, around 1,000 freemasons are members of the Grand Orient de Suisse, the Grand Loge Féminine de Suisse, the Grande Loge Mixte de Suisse and the Droit Humain, which is also mixed-gender.

The ‘Grand Lodge Alpina of Switzerland’ was founded in 1844 by 15 Swiss lodges as their umbrella organisation and is one of the few national grand lodges to have its own name.

The first Asian Masonic Lodge was founded in Calcutta, India, in 1729. Captain Ralph Farrwinter, an officer of the East India Company, was appointed Provincial Grand Master for the East Indies and granted the patent for the first Indian lodge ‘East India Arms, No. 72’, based in Fort William, Calcutta. This marked the beginning of the long Masonic tradition on the Asian continent.

Masonic lodges are organised as associations and are subject to the respective national association laws. They are mainly financed by membership fees, which are used to cover running costs such as rent or administration. In addition, they can be supported by donations or legacies, which are often used for charitable purposes or the preservation of lodge buildings. A central component of every meeting is also the collection for charitable purposes, which is used to support charitable projects and aid organisations.

The Capitol in Washington, D.C. was originally designed by William Thornton, built by Benjamin Latrobe and later completed by Thomas Walter, all three Freemasons. The cornerstone of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. was laid by President George Washington in 1793 according to the Masonic rite. The Marquis de La Fayette ceremonially presented him with the Masonic apron made for him by the Grand Lodge of Maryland.

Freemasonry is considered a secretive society because it does not publicise the personal experiences and exchanges between members or its rituals and symbols. This discretion serves to protect individual development and the free expression of opinions within the lodge. At the same time, its values and goals are open to public scrutiny, which is why it is not a secret society but a discreet community.

Freemasonry is an ethical organisation dedicated to personal development and humanitarian values. Its structures are decentralised, and each grand lodge acts independently without a superordinate global leadership. In addition, its principles are open to public scrutiny and its members come from a wide range of social backgrounds, which would make the idea of a centrally controlled power structure contradictory

The Illuminati (lat. illuminati - ‘the enlightened ones’) were a short-lived order founded by Adam Weishaupt in Ingolstadt in 1776. Their aim was to create a society through enlightenment and moral perfection in which the rule of man over man would become superfluous. The order only existed until 1785, when it was banned in the Electorate of Bavaria.

There is no historical evidence that Napoleon Bonaparte himself was a Freemason. However, he had close ties to Freemasonry, and his father and several of his brothers were members. During his reign, he promoted Freemasonry in Europe by bringing it out of secrecy and uniting the French lodges under the Grand Orient de France.

Modern freemasonry originated from the stonemason brotherhoods of the cathedral building lodges of the late Middle Ages, which cultivated operative rules of the trade and symbolic rituals.

In contrast, ancient Egyptian mystery cults originated from religious initiation traditions with no direct connection to Freemasonry. The Knights Templar, a medieval order of knights with a military-religious character, also has no demonstrable historical continuity with Freemasonry. Similarly, there is no direct link to the Order of the Garter, an elite British chivalric order whose aristocratic structure and objectives differ fundamentally from the Masonic idea of equality.

As early as the 18th century, women were accepted into so-called adoption lodges with a Masonic initiation ritual, especially in aristocratic circles. With the French Revolution and the idea of equality, mixed lodges also emerged in which women were ritually accepted into men's lodges. Since then, there have been both women-only lodges and mixed lodges worldwide alongside the traditional men's lodges.

In ‘War and Peace’, Leo Tolstoy describes Russian Freemasonry at the time of the Napoleonic Wars and links it to his protagonist Pierre Bezukhov's search for meaning. During a journey, Pierre meets the Freemason Osip Alexeyevich Basdyev, who familiarises him with the ideas of the society.

Tolstoy gives a particularly impressive account of Pierre's ceremonial initiation into the lodge, which is associated with symbolic trials and profound conversations about truth and knowledge. This passage reflects Tolstoy's interest in philosophical and spiritual questions and shows Freemasonry as a path of inner development.

The square symbolises righteousness and justice, while the compass embodies the unifying force of brotherly love that unites Freemasons with all people.

Freemasonry is traditionally divided into three degrees: Apprentice, Fellow Craft and Master. The Apprentice degree represents the beginning of the Masonic journey and the work on oneself, while the Fellow Craft degree symbolises further development and the pursuit of knowledge. The Master degree symbolises the completion of basic Masonic training.

Ballotage (from the French ballotte: small ball, or ballot: ballot ball) is a secret ballot with white and black balls on the admission or non-admission of someone to a society: white means approval, black rejection.

Ballotage, which is still common in Freemasonry today, was introduced in the early Middle Ages by the Benedictines for the election of abbots.

Neil Armstrong was not a Freemason. Buzz Aldrin is a member of ‘Oak Park Lodge No. 864’ in Alabama, John Glenn was a member of ‘Concord Lodge No. 688’ in Ohio, Gus Grissom of ‘Mitchell Lodge No. 228’ in Indiana.

After a pilot phase in 2017 that was only open to freemasons, the then Mayor of Bern, Alec von Graffenried, officially opened the Masonic Museum Switzerland to the general public on 3 November 2018.

Modern Freemasonry only emerged in 1717 - long after the death of Leonardo da Vinci in 1519. Although his works contain geometric and symbolic elements that also play a role in Freemasonry, there is no historical evidence of a direct connection. Theories about secret messages in his paintings are speculative and lack a reliable basis.

In Freemasonry, the rough stone (ashlar) symbolises a person's imperfect, natural personality, which is to be refined through work on oneself. Just as a stone is hewn and smoothed to fit into a building, the Freemason should mould and improve his character traits. This symbolic process stands for personal development, ethical education and the constant search for (self-)realisation and perfection.

‘The Magic Flute’ contains numerous symbols and themes based on Freemasonry. The figures of Sarastro and his priests symbolise wisdom, humanity and enlightenment, while the Queen of the Night stands for darkness and superstition. Tamino, the hero of the opera, has to pass trials by fire and water, which symbolises his inner maturing process and the search for truth. The music also reflects this symbolism, for example through the recurring motif of the number three and the rhythmic hammering in the overture, which is reminiscent of manual labour.
Sarastro's aria ‘In diesen heilgen Hallen kennt man die Rache nicht’ is well-known as the quintessence and moral guide for all temple work in Masonic lodges.

Even though many famous composers such as Mozart, Clérambault or Sibelius composed Masonic music or music for their lodges, and these are also regularly played in the lodges, there is no actual Masonic hymn.

Even though the essence of Freemasonry is discussed in the conversations in Thomas Mann's ‘The Magic Mountain’, Mann himself was not a Freemason.

Carl von Ossietzky was a member of the Hamburg lodge ‘Menschentum’, Lessing of the Hamburg lodge ‘Zu den drei Rosen’ and Tucholsky of the Berlin lodge ‘Zur Morgenröte’.

Jonas Furrer was the first Federal President of modern Switzerland from 1848 and the first Grand Orator in the Directorate of the Grand Loge Alpina of Switzerland, which was founded in 1844. Hottinger was the first Grand Master, Druey was a Freemason, but not a member of the Directorate of the Grand Lodge, and Munzinger was not a Freemason.