When did Freemasonry come to Kazakhstan?
The first Masonic light reached our land in 1906, with the initiation of Alikhan Bökeyhan, who later led the Alash Orda government and was the first Kazakh Freemason. In the Soviet years every Lodge was closed. Kazakh Freemasonry resumed its work in 2015, when the first Lodges of this obedience were consecrated in Almaty.
How does a man become a Freemason?
If a Lodge works regularly in your city, its members will meet you two or three times. You will then be invited to the Lodge, and the Brethren will ballot on your petition. If no Lodge works in your city, you will be asked to come to the nearest city where one does, and, if the Lodge accepts you, you will be initiated there.
The procedure begins with the candidate form. Forms that are incomplete are not considered.
May a Muslim become a Freemason?
Yes. Contrary to a widespread belief, there is no general prohibition on Muslims joining a Masonic Lodge. Freemasonry offers a Muslim the same path of personal and spiritual growth that it offers any man who believes in God.
Its founding principles, humanity and the search for knowledge, do not contradict the teachings of Islam. Many Brethren find that the work of the Lodge deepens the understanding of their own faith. Regular Grand Lodges work in countries with a Muslim majority, among them Turkey, Lebanon and Azerbaijan.
Why do men become Freemasons?
Many men become Freemasons because they look for a fellowship of like-minded men who value self-knowledge and self-improvement. Freemasonry gives them the means to understand themselves and the world more deeply, through its ceremonies and the study of its symbols. For others it is a way to join a tradition that values honesty, virtue and service to others. In every case, a man who joins seeks to grow and to understand how he can contribute to society.
What secrets will be revealed to me?
The secrets of Freemasonry are less outward than inward. The Craft gives a man the opportunity to enter a world of self-knowledge and wisdom, where he learns to see hidden meanings and to understand the world more deeply. In time he comes to see that the true secrets lie within each of us, and Freemasonry helps him to draw on them.