Emerald Tablet
"The Secret" website cites the Emerald Tablet, said to be written by Hermes Trismegistus (purportedly a "secret teacher"), as... one of the most important historical documents known to mankind". Byrne posits that the earliest trace of "the secret" occurred in the Emerald Tablet, followed much later by the Rosicrucians — a "secret order that espoused many of the ideas of The Secret." Mention is made of Victor Hugo and Ludwig van Beethoven's supposed membership in the order as well as Isaac Newton's purported work in translating the tablet. However, no evidence has been shown to support these claims.