author
Three Initiates
1862–1932
Best known as the likely force behind the mysterious name “Three Initiates,” this prolific New Thought writer helped shape early popular writing on mental science, yoga, and Hermetic philosophy. His books blended self-improvement, occult themes, and practical advice in a way that reached a wide audience in the early 1900s.
1 Audiobook
The Kybalion A Study of The Hermetic Philosophy of Ancient Egypt and Greece
by Three Initiates
About the author
Born in 1862, William Walker Atkinson was an American attorney, publisher, and author who became an important figure in the New Thought movement. He wrote extensively on personal development, mind power, spirituality, and esoteric subjects, often using pseudonyms and publishing across a wide range of related fields.
He is widely identified as the probable author, or at least a principal author, behind the pseudonym Three Initiates, best known for The Kybalion (1908). That book became one of the most enduring popular introductions to Hermetic ideas, and Atkinson’s broader body of work helped bring mystical and self-help concepts to mainstream readers of his time.
Because “Three Initiates” was a pen name rather than a public literary identity, many book listings connect it to Atkinson’s life dates, 1862–1932. Even where some uncertainty remains about the exact authorship arrangement, his influence on the tradition surrounding The Kybalion is central and widely recognized.