Red herrings regarding the higher teachings of the A∴O∴ and its true Third Order

PAT ZALEWSKI made some comments about MacGregor Mathers’ Rosicrucian Order of Alpha Omega, the senior Grades and one hypothesis about the Third Order, back on the reconstructionist yahoo-forum a week ago, which has come to my attention just recently and that needs some further problematization on my behalf. I will address these issues as briefly as I can, as I don’t want to repeat myself; therefore you must indulge me to provide you with some links to previous postings by me on this blog. Now, Mr. Zalewski starts off saying, that:

In the enochian system, the tablets and serviant squares were ZAM [Zelator Adeptus Minor] and the Kerubics at THAM [Theoricus Adeptus Minor]. The calvary cross was most likely at PAM [Practicus Adeptus Minor] and the central cross at PhAM [Philosophus Adeptus Minor] and the Tablet of Union at AAM [Adept Adeptus Minor]. On the ritual study since the ZAM was a study of the 0=0 and the THAM a study of the 1=10 the rest of 5=6 sub-grades would be taken up by the elemental ritual. That leaves the Portal and 5=6 to be analysed, and that was most likely done at 6=5 and 7=4 level- if we follow the GD pattern. I very much doubt that any of this was followed through on.

While Mr. Zalewski is quite correct that the Second Order of the original Order of the G∴D∴ and the Rosicrucian Order of A∴O∴ seperated the in depth analysis of the Kerubic Squares from the Z.A.M. curriculum and reserved it for the Th.A.M., the rest is speculation on Mr. Zalewski’s behalf regarding the P.A.M., Ph.A.M., and A.A.M. sub-grades and the Enochian teachings, although there is some merit and logic to his suggestions. Regarding Elemental Grade analysis, I agree with Mr. Zalewski that this is most likely and that as the 1°=10° was the study of a Th.A.M., the 2°=9° should have been the study of a P.A.M., the 3°=8° of a Ph.A.M. and the 4°=7° of a A.A.M. However, we do not know if the Portal Grade also was not part of the A.A.M. curriculum.

I personally doubt though that the 5°=6° was supposed to be analysed at all in that same manner; the Ritual of the Portals perhaps, as it follows the same pattern as that of the Elemental Grades. But regarding the 5°=6° I seriously doubt this as it is of an entirely different nature. We know that the Ritual of the Portals was the precursor to the later 5°=6° Ritual, which created the first nominal Adepti Minori; although them two later becoming attached, the Ritual of the Portals being a species of preliminary “ritual of the paths” which lead the aspirant to the Vault of the Adepti, they are of entire different matters altogether. While the Ritual of the Portals belongs to the same type of rituals as that of the Elemental Grades, the 5°=6° belongs to entirely different types of rituals which sets it (and the other senior Adepti Grade Rituals) apart from the Outer Order formula.

What we also do know is that its symbolism was analysed in The Book of the Tomb, on an relatively early level of the study of the Minor Adept, perhaps even at the level of Neophyte Adeptus Minor. (There exists an entirely different analysis, similar to that of the Book of the Tomb, attached as an appendix to the A∴O∴ 5°=6° Ritual, which suggests this.) I seriously doubt that senior Adepts such as Westcott was priviliged to any higher knowledge of what was actually going on in the 5°=6° Ritual, beyond the obvious and its symbology; that knowledge was reserved for the Third Order initiates such as MacGregor Mathers who understood it in the light of the rituals of the 6°=5° and 7°=4°, which are part of an entire and interlinked initiatic cycle. Beyond this information, I cannot venture any deeper into this subject matter without breaching initiatic secrets; I have given you enough hints to understand that it is impossible to “analyse” the 5°=6° Ritual in the same manner as you will find it in Mr. Zalewski’s Golden Dawn Rituals and Commentaries. Thus I do agree with Mr. Zalewski that not that much was followed through on. Then Mr. Zalewski continues:

The GD tarot for the AO was never completed and they used the S[tella] M[atutina] cards -from what I was told. Enochian chess was never finished nor the governors of the tablets nor the seal. There was a great deal left undone.

As I said, I tend to agree with Mr. Zalewski on this one, that a great deal was left undone. However, his suggestion that the A∴O∴ initiates were using Felkin’s version from the Stella Matutina is quite ludicrous. If anything, the initiates of the A∴O∴, as was the case with that of the original G∴D∴, were using the current published decks, such as Papus’ The Tarot of the Bohemians which my earlier short essay on the confusion of Strength vs. Justice attributions suggests. I am also quite content in believing that the G∴D∴ and later the A∴O∴ used Tarot Keys drawn up for the various Rituals used in the Temple and Vault. However, I do agree with Mr. Zalewski that it was not very likely that these Keys were copied to any greater extent by the initiates themselves. However, this doesn’t at all suggest that an entire esoteric Tarot Deck was not existent in the A∴O∴. Mr. Zalewski then continues:

I tend to side with Nick Farrell on the higher levels of the AO under Mathers. If Berridge only reached 6=5 then it very in the AO few made it to 7=4, only chiefs. Tony Fullers Idea (which he delivered a paper on some years ago at the first GD conference) of the Sun order being a defacto Third order of the GD has much merit. As far as those GD members were concerned, in all probability what was lacking in the GD and AO could be found in the material in the Sun order. So there was no real need to go to the higher GD levels to obtain this information when the Sun order provided it.

If Tony Fuller once held this highly speculative idea, it seems he doesn’t any more. I don’t blame him for changing his mind as this idea about the Sun Order (also known as he Cromlech Temple) being the Third Order of the G∴D∴ is even more ludicrous than then previous one. The Sun Order was originally an entirely different Order, which saw dual membership between the A∴O∴ and the Sun Order as beneficent. Some of its teachings of the Aura seems to interact quite well with the teachings in the G∴D∴ regarding the Sphere of Sensation. However, this doesn’t at all mean that the Sun Order was an acting Third Order for the A∴O∴. At the very most, the Sun Order and its Cromlech Temple served to be a species of “side degrees”, which is a quite common concept in Freemasonry. That is, degrees which is not required but is regarded to bee looked in favour to further the understanding of the formal degrees.

Thus, to a certain degree, the Adepti of the A∴O∴ could have regarded the Sun Order to act as a side order, adding some to the core teachings of the R.R. et A.C. This is also a analysis which I seem to share with the late Francis King, the author of Ritual Magic in England which was the first literary work discussing and publishing Sun Order material. Besides, nothing suggests that anything produced in the Cromlech Temple relevant to the A∴O∴ reached any higher Grade than that of the 7°=4°, which negates it being any “Third Order” which obviously operates Grades beyond that of the Adeptus Exemptus. I already addressed this topic four years ago in my essay on the sexual teachings of the Alpha et Omega and its supposed relation to the Cromlech Temple and already then concluded that the Sun Order is a dead end in understanding the Third Order of the G∴D∴ and A∴O∴.

According to the same Mr. Fuller which Mr. Zalewski cites as a source for his own pet theories, MacGregor Marthers had set up an “Adept Collage” which consisted of the R.R.et A.C. and the Sun Order as the “two Sister Rosicrucian Orders in Britannia”; thus the Sun Order wasn’t regarded to be superior to but equal to the R.R et A.C. (Second Order) of the A∴O∴, which negates it being put upon any pedestal (i.e. a Third Order). Even Mr. Fuller himself was much hesitant in 2008 to assert that this was a general attitude within the A∴O∴, although some Adepts of the S∴M∴ might have believed this to be true. I went over all of this in 2008 and my short essay entitled The Amity of the Alpha et Omega and the Stella Matutina, and in 2009 in my follow-up on the higher teachings of the Alpha et Omega and the Solar Order. Finally, Mr. Zalewski choses to write thus:

I's [sic.] like to add one very important point here about Astral masters in the SM and Sun Order. Felkin’s chiefs of the Sun Order (some call the Sun masters) were also spitting information on the GD as well. The Sun masters were interchangeable with the GD guides.

This is a pure speculation on behalf of Mr. Zalewski. I doubt that Felkin had anything to do with the Cromlech Temple at the time of his “Sun Masters” phase. This confusion between the Sun Order and the “Sun Masters” has also been suggested by Nick Farrell in his book King over the water, which I have addressed in a review. It’s pure coincidence; the reference to the Sun being of such a universal significance that this kind of confusion is easily made. Mr. Fuller suggests that even Felkin himself later made this confusion. This entire subject of astral masters has nothing whatsoever to do with the real Secret Chiefs of the true Third Order, which is the custodian of the ancient teachings of Internal Alchemy. Nothing contained in the teachings of neither the Sun Order nor the “Sun Masters” suggest any connection to these ancient alchemical teachings. Thus, Mr. Zalewski’s suggestions, faithfully “corroborating” that of Mr. Farrell’s, is simply a red herring. Nothing more.

S∴R∴

Common misconceptions regarding the nature of secret traditional teachings

o

IN THIS POST-MODERNIST age there are many strange notions circulating on the Internet amongst occultists. Lately we have seen more examples to this effect in the contemporary Golden Dawn community regarding what should to be expected of “new” teachings taking off from the published materials of Order documents written in the latter part of the 19th Century. A “loundry list” coming from such quarters was published the other day on G.H. Fra. L.e.S.’ blog what should be expected being transmitted from any Secret Chiefs of a Third Order. They (i.e. the Secret Chiefs) are expected to deliver more papers on the Golden Dawn Tarot, on Golden Dawn style Enochiana, on Enochian Chess, on God-Forms used in the different Grades (initiation ceremonies), on Golden Dawn Grade ceremonies (which means more ritual commentaries), on non-material alchemy (“spiritual alchemy” that is), on the Convoluted Forces, etc.

These types of questions are to be expected from individuals not looking beyond stuff written about the Golden Dawn tradition and any modern developments or deviations of it made by Anglo-Saxon authors, such as Israel Regardie, Aleister Crowley, Dion Fortune, Paul Foster Case, etc. That is, individuals with big blinkers preventing them from seeing the Golden Dawn Tradition as being but a petal (but a most beautiful one!) on the grand Rosicrucian Rose of the Hermetic Cross.

The big question that pops up in my head is: Why should the Secret Chiefs of the Third Order stoop down to any post-modernist reconstructions of what actually is lacking in the Golden Dawn Tradition? Not all aspects of the Second Order / R.R. et A.C. teachings as presented in published literature has been condoned by the Third Order in the first place. The fact is that the Third Order severed its communication with the Golden Dawn Tradition following the publications of Aleister Crowley when they saw what S.L. MacGregor Mathers had done to the teachings, taking liberties and not taking into consideration the importance of not blending egregores traditionally foreign to each other. To cut it short, MacGregor Mathers went somewhat to far in his syncretistic endeavours. Why should They even condone any further deviations from the Tradition?

That said, I know for a fact that teachings with extremely important practical implications are given on Golden Dawn ritual that has uncovered layers which no-one would have even dreamt of was possible, especially in post-modernist circles, and which properly reconnects the “classical” Golden Dawn symbolism with the ancient Tradition. And it has been there before everyone’s eyes all the time! It’s just too obvious to be noticed.

The rituals of the Outer or First Order should be studied in detail by the Second Order, at the level of the 5°=6° and its sub-grades. The 5°=6° is the proper study, in my opinion, of the 6°=5°, while that latter Grade should be the study of the 7°=4°. The Third Order is definitely not the place to study freemasonic style rituals. Somewhere along the path of the initiatory system rituals must change in emphasis and structure from symbolical to direct manipulation of the energetic body. Thus the higher you go, the more “simple” the rituals may seem. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the higher Grade rituals are less complex or intricate in their composition, however this is not on the symbolical or intellectual level but rather energetic. After a certain point initiation rituals are only supposed to be experienced and integrated magically and alchemically, not through intellectual study of symbolism. MacGregor Mathers and W. W. Westcott already knew this when they created the 6°=5° and 7°=4° rituals, which are much more simple, cut down and direct compared to the 5°=6°. This means that the freemasonic emphasis and preoccupation with symbology and analogy fades away already in the Second Order.

Regarding alchemy, there is no such thing as a “non-material alchemy”. That is simply a modernist reconstruction (even predating our post-modernist age) which is based upon a faulty and un-initiated understanding of the Royal Art. Alchemy is about the restoration of matter into its original state. Anything else is simply allegorical speculation which properly doesn’t concern the Third Order, and hardly even the Second. Post-modernist authors have recently made suggestions concerning Alchemy that from a strictly Hermetic point of view aren’t even properly speaking allegorical, as they represent pure intellectual speculation.

For me it seems that the most important aspect of the training of the Adept, in a post-modernist vision of the Golden Dawn, is that of intellectual understanding and to create even more convoluted teachings. Whereas the actual goal of the Adept in the Traditional Rosicrucian system of initiation is that of emancipation from the restrictions of ordinary or mundane (mediocre) life – that of the accomplishment of the Philosopher’s Stone and the attainment of Immortality. Where is the Stone to be found or extracted from further intellectual speculations?

Many aspiring or prospective students are being put off by the Western Esoteric Tradition, and in particular the Golden Dawn Tradition, as it is presented in published litterature, because it already lays to much emphasis on intellectual studies compared to presenting practical formulae. Today students expect noting less practical as compared to the Eastern Traditions, and rightly so. They want and need tangible transformation of their physical and sublte selves. Today, a Golden Dawn Order must stand ready to deliver the goods, so to speak. So what then is its higher teachings supposed to deliver? Even more complex intellectual study and speculative convolutions? Do people really believe that analysis provides true Illumination? Or do they mistake enlightenment for Illumination?

Remember that enlightenment only concerns itself with the rational mind while true Illumination instead concerns the True and Higher Self, and ultimately God or the All. If you prefer the enlightenment of the analytical rational mind over the Illumination of God you will let your ego or lower self usurp the throne of the True King, the Solar Self. Thus will you be condemned to ignorance from the Ultimate Truth, satisfying yourself with small bits and pieces of facts, always missing the bigger picture. Even worse than that, actively inhibiting your process of transmutation – of the Great Work – you will also choose death and corruption before immortality and emancipation.

Whatever teachings originating from the Third Order that I have been fortunate enough to encounter on this topic (of Alchemy), they far surpasses anything that lately has been presented in a purely speculative and convoluted manner. I am especially disappointed lately with certain understandings of Golden Dawn Alchemy, recently published, which will take the serious student nowhere in his alchemical understanding.

But then again, you won’t find any of these Third Order teachings being profaned in the same manner as has become the custom of certain post-modernist authors. True Second Order material is not for the armchair magician to receive without any personal effort at all. If you want to receive the benefits of the Traditional teachings originating from the Third Order, you have to do that in the traditional way – that is through initiation. This material is sub rosa, as it traditionally is supposed to be.

However, that doesn’t mean that it is not available. In fact the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega has invited Adepts from a wide variety of Rosicrucian Orders to have a share of this unique material as well. I know for a fact that several well respected authorities on the occult and accomplished Adepts already have become privy to these teachings. But my oaths of secrecy prohibits me to reveal the identities of these Adepts. So, the fact is that the Alpha et Omega isn’t at all withholding any new information from the general esoteric community. But it must be remembered that this sharing can only be administered under strict traditional rules which involves severe oaths of secrecy. Individuals who have proven themselves to be untrustworthy through profanation or cannot follow basic and traditional rules of the Golden Dawn and that of Rosicrucianism cannot expect to receive any secret traditional teachings.

But that doesn’t mean that the teachings coming from the Third Order into the reformed Second Order necessarily take off from whatever has been presented in post-modern publications, developed according to the personal reconstructionist preferences of the authors. What the Third Order has presented constitutes Traditional teachings on different aspects of the standard Golden Dawn teachings, such as the symbolism of the Neophyte Hall and a full alchemical explanation of the Outer Order Rituals which goes way beyond anything that has been presented lately on Alchemy and Golden Dawn Ritual.

Also, it must be made clear for my readers that there are secret teachings reserved for Third Order initiates as contrasted to teachings that have originated from the Third Order as well but are meant to be applied in the context of the reformed Second Order. I know from personal experience that the sub-grades of the 5°=6° have already been expanded upon. But the teachings of the senior Grades of the Second Order, i.e. the 6°=5° and 7°=4°, are being expanded upon in a much more grander scale.

One such aspect of the teachings recently transmitted to the reformed Second Order, hermetically sealed from the Outer World, is the true meanings of the Kameoth or Magical Squares corresponding to the Seven Planets, which clearly interconnects in a direct way with both Golden Dawn initiation rituals and the magical system of the Lesser Adept. The student of the First Order and the Lesser Adept of the Second Order encounters the Magical Squares presented in a simple two-dimensional format, such as they are found in published literature. The Third Order has recently transmitted teachings that instructs the Major and Exempt Adepts how to decipher these enumbered grids so that they may create three dimensional cubes, using the Planetary Seals to unlock the encrypted published Kameoth. These cubes are then used to access parallel dimensions on the inner planes, through secret magical hierarchies and their accompanying names and sigils, which leads to the centre of the Cube and the purely Divine. Thus, what we see here is an extremely advanced form of Planetary Theurgy.

However, the newly received teachings from the Third Order must bee seen against the context of the initiatic system of the Adeptus Grades of the Second Order. A basic understanding of this system has recently been unveiled by Lux E Tenebris. Let me make a brief summary of these teachings. Basically the three Adepti Grades represent a mental, energetic and physical process of change and unfoldment. The Adeptus Minor 5°=6° Grade represents a death process and constitutes a self-sacrifice, in order to initiate a transformation of himself into a new form. In the Adeptus Major 6°=5° Grade the soul is detached and separated from the “dead” body and in this state the candidate encounters his own complexes during a sojourn to the underworld, as well as seeing both his own microcosmic nature and the greater nature of the macrocosm in a different and true light, resulting in a full and stabilized contact with the Holy Guardian Angel. After this revelation the soul is returned to its body and the Adept becomes resurrected unto a new species of life and thus emerges as an Exempt Adept. As an outcome of this encounter with the upper realms of the astral, the hidden powers of the Adept are awakened, and in the Adeptus Exemptus 7°=4° Grade he learns to harness these powers for the common good as well as to govern the Order, as all necessary lineages are bestowed unto him at this final Grade of the Second Order. Further Magical and Alchemical techniques are transmitted to the Exempt Adept, which will help him to pass across the Abyss into the Third Order, where the final accomplishment of the Great Work is supposed to occur.

I personally have found these teachings on the Adepti Grades to be remarkable and as such they constitutes evidence of true traditional Hermetic teachings. I really recommend the reader to study the text in full. Furthermore, and to my personal satisfaction, they confirm most of my own beliefs about the initiatic journey that I have gathered through my own experience of the Second Order / R.R. et A.C. initiatic and magical process. I have published a series of essays on this subject in the following order:

1. The Mystery of the Crucifixion
2. Grades and spiritual attainment
3. Who is an Adept?
4. The Bodhisattvas of the West
5. What is Apotheosis?

The big difference between the analysis made by L.e.T. and me is the allotment of the contact between the Adept and his Holy Guardian Angel. However, this also depends upon how one defines “Knowledge and Conversation”. L.e.T. stresses that the contact with the Angel is stabilized in the Adeptus Major Grade, which actually leaves room for an initial knowledge and conversation with the Guardian Angel at the level of Adeptus Minor, albeit a tentative or “volatile” one which yet has to become stabilized or “fixed” at the level of Adeptus Major.

Many students interprets the words “Knowledge and Conversation” as depicting a union with the Guardian Angel. However, these two occurances are distinct experiences, the Knowledge and Conversation signifying the first stage which eventually may lead to a full union. The Major Adept experiences a stabilized communication with his Guardian Angel, which means that he is more fully introduced to its presence compared to the dim and clogged communication between the Lesser Adept and the Angel. The difference in communication between the Lesser and Greater Adepts being that of separation (or “death”) of the physical body, representing an alchemical separation and a major leap in the spiritual unfoldment of the initiate.

If someone rejects these teachings as irrelevant it says more about that person expressing this opinion that it does about the teachings themselves. Anyone that has passed through the ordeal of the Second Order, as it was originally and traditionally intended, will immediately acknowledge the truth in L.e.T.’s words. Furthermore, his disciple G.H. Fra. L.e.S. has clearly proven that there are substantial teachings that has been approved for the senior Grades of the Second Order of the Alpha et Omega. But what has been said in concrete terms regarding these are only teasers that cannot be put into any practice without proper initiation. Enough proof have been shared to the Outer World just to show what can be expected from any serious students who are prepared to meet the requirements of receiving them.

Those who had been fortunate enough to study this body of traditional instruction are amazed at the quality of the teachings of the deeper symbolism of the Golden Dawn. But these teachings doesn’t concern itself with any post-modern opinions about what the Golden Dawn is supposed to be reconstructed into; it concerns itself with the original Hermetic teachings behind Rosicrucian Traditions such as the Golden Dawn. And in this respect, even aspects of the teachings which MacGregor Mathers took himself liberties with would become subject to correction. The Golden Dawn Tradition, having lost its guidance for the last century, has to be subjected to some necessary purging. Initiates must be prepared to rid themselves from some of their precious preconceived conceptions; they must be prepared to “kill their darlings”. Remember the Stella Matutina version of the 0=0 ritual which says that “only those who are lightly armed can attain the summit”.

Now, the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega has been accused of rejecting astral contacts and that we have stated that the Third Order only works upon the physical level in transmitting secret teachings. It is true, to a certain extent, that we have opposed “astral contacts” as a valid substitute for live encounters. The reason behind this is the New Age movement popularising the dangerous practice of “channelling” astral entities, something that unfortunately has also spilled over into the Golden Dawn community.

But let us problematize this somewhat, remembering well that I cannot speak candidly about this sensitive subject. What I may say, or rather repeat what G.H. Fra. L.e.S. already has said before, is that the Third Order operates on different levels, of which the physical is but one. But there also exists Hermetic Masters of the Third Order that operate on the Solar Plane, as an outcome of completing the Great Work. The Third Order is governed by two councils, each having 12 members. The council that operates on the Solar level presides over the council of 12 Magi in physical incarnation. Thus, if you encounter a Third Order which cannot manifest any living or incarnated Masters, chances are high you have arrived at a dead end which will lead you nowhere or worse provide you with a erroneous understanding of the Tradition already manifested. It is obvious, at least for those who have encountered it, that the Third Order primarily uses its physically incarnated Magi to guide any outer vehicle and public or semi-public initiatory school. Solar Masters doesn’t contact just any initiate or Adept, only true Magi that had done the required Work.

Post-modernist teachers within the Golden Dawn community reject the notion of incarnated masters, comparing it to Theosophy and as such of being foreign to the Golden Dawn Tradition. Suffice to say is that Theosophy has lot of fanciful theories of “Mahatmas” and the like. This has nothing at all to do with any Third Order teachings. If anything Eastern, one has to look at the Tibetan Buddhist Tradition to find anything remotely similar. But what post-modern teachers and students with reconstructionist tendencies doesn’t understand is the full implications of the Hermetic Tradition, of which the hierarchies of initiates is but one. There are many layers of this Tradition in which Rosicrucian Orders as the Golden Dawn constitutes but the Outer Vehicles. And, as has been shown, even amongst the ancient Third Order there exists hierarchal layers which goes beyond the pale of the outer or physical world. The fact is that the Occidental Alchemical Tradition is as interesting as anything similar in the Orient, including Tibetan Buddhist Tantra which it approximates in its richness and variety.

The Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega has also been accused of being a teacher centred organization relying heavily on Masters and apprenticeship, and that the Secret Chiefs stands in between the initiate and his illumination. It is true that a student in our Order may experience more guidance compared to a majority of contemporary organizations. However, the Third Order doesn’t stand in between Man and the Divine. This is a Catholic or Orthodox Christian viewpoint. What the Third Order and its Secret Chiefs does provide though is the Hermetic Tradition, both in theory and practice, in its most true and uncorrupted form. This Tradition in itself provides the means for humanity to restore itself into its original and true form, in which spirit and matter, mind and body, becomes as One. No Master can grant you this, beyond being the yeast or catalyst in initiating this process; substantial result actually comes from hard work and personal effort on the part of the initiate. Thus, the Master provides you with the initiation and the transmission of a body of teachings you yourself have to apply in your daily work.

The Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega is a Traditionalistic Order. But being such doesn’t limit itself into scholarly study of old or ancient manuscripts in libraries or private collections. Rather it concerns itself with traditional initiation and esoteric lineage, i.e. the passing on of a magical current and any oral teachings that follows with that from Master to disciple, from initiator to initiate, of an unbroken chain that has hundreds of generations behind it. There is no other way of fully receiving a genuine and living Tradition; you will only find bits and pieces of incomplete information in published literature and in libraries, dead tracks as it were, which in no way will lead you to a full understanding of the Tradition and especially grasping its practical formulae. The Question of the Magical Squares, which everyone takes for granted through published literature, serves as a good one example of this. The practice of Internal Alchemy being yet another. Of course anyone with power ambitions in the Golden Dawn community, being outside the pale of this wonderful experience of true initiation, will only scratch his head in reading this and surely also feel intimidated by the very idea, as this ruins his own reconstructed franchise.

Another strange notion recently suggested by the post-modern mind is that having an older Order and its teachings at the apex of the system makes the First and Second Orders of the Golden Dawn redundant. Why not go straight to the source, they ask? However, this assumption only betrays a faulty understanding of initiatory processes and the traditional way of the training of the initiate. There are three levels of the initiatory process. The first one, which properly belongs to the Outer or First Order, is the symbolical, which I here propose also may be referred to as the “saturnian mysteries”. The next level is the analogical, also referred to as the “lunar mysteries”, which properly belongs to the Second Order. The last step is the direct way of initiation, also referred to as the “solar mysteries”, which constitutes the formulae of the Third Order.

Although the modern initiate stands prepared in a quite different way as compared to the one belonging to the former Reformation anno 1888, making purely “saturnian” Freemasonic style initiation and instruction redunant in our age – the Reformation of 1999 has made the Outer or First Order into a analogical one by all practical means, albeit on a basic level – to properly prepare the initiate he or she must proceed first with the “lunar” work before he or she may start with the “solar”. To skip the preliminary analogical step may have serious or even disastrous consequences for the initiate, depending on his or her qualifications, both spiritually and energetically. But the general scheme of initiation must follow these steps. For a fuller grasp of the role of the three Orders of the Golden Dawn I recommend the essay written by G.H. Fra. L.e.S. on this subject entitled Types of Esoteric Orders and the Reformation Fraternitatis, Anno 1999.

Furthermore, individuals making such propositions have entirely missed one very important fact regarding the nature of the Third Order. It is not a public or semi-public organization that anyone may contact through an e-mail address or just by clicking on a message button of a website on the Internet as with most big-name orders. Contrary to the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega, or any visible and external collage, the Third Order is an extremely secretive Rosicrucian Internal Collage. They cannot be sought after and found in some kind of a Knights Quest, as in the tragicomic story of R.W. Felkin, the Chief of the Stella Matutina. He did find a teacher in Rudolf Steiner but not an actual Secret Chief. Contrary to this idea, the fact is that the Third Order must find you instead; if you are deemed worthy they will eventually contact you.

Thus the only way in being spotted by them is by joining any of the true and authentic Rosicrucian bodies. The Rosicrucian Order of the Alpha et Omega is but one of these outer and modern vehicles of the true and ancient Order. However, even in such a legitimate body not everyone is admitted into the highest Hermetic initiatory cycle. The Third Order only admits the most promising and advanced Adepts. And even among these only the fewest of the few are admitted by invitation. If working in the Golden Dawn system to be even considered for admission one must already be an Adeptus Exemptus (7°=4°). And to reach to that exalted initiatory stature in itself, you must progress through the entire First and Second Orders. As I have said repeatedly, the initiatory system of the Golden Dawn represents true spiritual progression attained in graduated steps. You simply cannot cheat the natural way of spiritual development; alchemy imitates nature!

Moreover, the teachings of the Third Order, amongst else, contains the true secrets of Alchemy. But I must repeat, this doesn’t mean that you must skip neither the First nor the Second Orders. In alchemy the Matter must be properly prepared and the heat gradually raised, also inside the initiate. In your Alchemical and Theurgical training, you have to work first with the external processes, which in the case of Alchemy involves the external laboratory of cucurbits, alembics, crucibles and ovens, and in the case of Theurgy our well known gowns, altars, tablets, implements and talismans, etc. When these analogical or “lunar” tools have been properly worked upon and integrated into your own Sphere of Sensation, you are then ready to work with the direct or “solar” processes of Internal Alchemy and Internal Theurgy.

Having succeeded in creating the external Philosopher’s Stone through the Mineral Great Work doesn’t make you a Magister Templi (8°=3°) by default, as has been suggested. At most it makes you an Adeptus Exemptus (7°=4°) and as I just said that Grade is a requirement for being prepared to proceed with Internal Alchemy and initiation into the Third Order, which solely concerns itself with the creation of the Internal Stone and development of the Solar Body of Light.

Addendum (2014-03-13)
 
Since writing this blog yours truly is no longer affiliated with the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, Outer Order of the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha Omega® (H.O.G.D./A+O®). However, my general view on this subject stays firmly unchanged, as expressed in the above written text, and what I have authored previously on the Gyllene Gryningen blog still represents my overall opinion. Any practices referred to in reference to the H.O.G.D./A+O® also apply to the Order that I am currently affiliated with, namely the Hermetiska Orden av Den Gryende Morgonrodnaden (“Hermetic Order of the Nascent Aurora”) or H∴O∴G∴M+R. 

S∴R∴

A few notes on energy work

o

The other day I commented upon a blog post made by Frater A.I.T. where he proposes that meditation constitutes energy work, especially meditation of the kind that uses “prayer” to aspire towards God or the ALL. He mentions Alchemical Masters who often admonished their students to use Prayer in their workings. My good Frater also proposes extended practice several hours per day as the true key to aquiring immortality, warning the student against becoming content with the standard daily half or whole hour exercise. I basically agree with Frater A.I.T. in almost every word, with the only exception of contrasting energy work with ritual. Meditation surely is “energy work”, or is “energetic” in its nature; and with “energy” I am referring to both astral, etheric and physical forms in this context. Furthermore, meditation also has the great benefit of simplicity. I myself often meditate on the tram to and from work, and sometimes while I walk along a street.

My own experiences, that I would like to share with you for the first time since I started this blog, has taught me that it is the Words of Power (or the “matram” to use an equivalent oriental term) used in meditation that makes the energetic work done. The power of words triggers it; or at least the logos has some important part in all of this “raising of energy”. I have found out, through my own intuition, that a particular set of vowels really gets my energetic juices flowing so to speak, even if I only “say” them mentally (i.e. silently without using my mouth), which is how I do it in the majority of cases because of meditating in the public. The simple thought and focus upon the Word triggers the energy!

This meditation of my own device, silently using a power “mantram” of the Western Esoteric Tradition, and with no particular visualization, together with another energetic meditative exercise which I was taught in the R.R. et A.C., which make use of both vibrated Words of Power and visualizations, in fact “awakened” or “activated” my energetic body, centered along my spinal column.

I have always with ease felt etheric “energy” while doing invocations, especially in working God-Form Magic and intoning the Enochian Keys, but that feeling of energy has more been of a gentle type, even though I have felt it being spread through the whole of my physical body, either as a shower falling from my head or as a surge raising from the feet. Since I awakened my Serpent Fire along my spinal column, using the aforementioned techniques of meditative nature, the sensations has been much more intensified, as physical nerv currents of electricity and sometimes approximating orgasmic sensations; also regular invocations using Supreme or Greater Invocation Rituals (of the Pentagram and Hexagram) awakens this latter flow in my energetic body centered in a never before felt intensity along the spine.

I have been hesitant to share this highly personal gnosis with you, my dear reader, but feel that I must deviate from my principles of secrecy to make you understand that I base my opinions on my own practical experiences. So I must add to what Frater A.I.T. have stated in his blog, that also Ceremonial Magic – the use of ritual by and of itself – constitutes true energetic work. Thus I see no actual difference between meditation and ritual in importance, other that the use of ritual requires much more preparation and cannot be performed everywhere as with meditation. Thus it is simpler and more practical to use meditation as the basis for one’s work. But one shouldn’t substitute ritual work with meditation as I believe that the former is crucial in manifesting it fully in the physical body, because of the physical movements and different postures being done. Lets not underestimate the value of movement and posture!

To use a comparison between the traditions of the occident and the orient. While the meditative exercises may be compared to Hindu Yoga or Tibetan Buddhism, Ceremonial Magic may be compared to Taoist energetic work such as Qi-Gong, or Thai Chi, etc. Both perspectives on spiritual exercise work splendidly and should be seamlessly integrated in the Adept’s work, and also in that of the Aspirant’s, constituting a work in two parts.

So, in the final analysis I agree that meditation should be extended and used in prolonged application also outside of the traditional ritual Oratory, as often as one may find moments of opportunity in the daily affairs of life, simply because it is manageable to use in this way. And that this is the key to success I can attest fully with myself as a living example. It is always when I devote myself to the work fully, and in most aspects of my life, when I harvest the most true results.

I also agree with Frater A.I.T.:s advice to study the Western Alchemical Tradition in conjunction with the Eastern counterparts, as the latter are so related to the Western equivalents when it comes to energy work and alchemical applications, especially the traditions of Tantra, of Hatha Yoga and the practices of the Nath and Rasa Siddhas. A very good introduction to the Eastern tradition for the western Alchemist and Magician is David Gordon White’s books, such as The Alchemical Body and Kiss of the Yogini. While being academic works they also gives ample references to the original source and canonical texts. These books have the advantage of describing Tantra and Yoga as it was meant to be when these text books were written in the mediaeval times, i.e. the historical point of view, not the New Age stance on these topics that often divides matter from spirit, as well as energy from the body.

S∴R∴

Prejudice against Magic and the legacy of the Golden Rosy+Cross

o

A while ago I stumbled across someone asking why major organizations calling themselves “Rosicrucian” talks degradory about magic and what members of any of the Golden Dawn Orders had to say regarding this. The fact is, as it seems, that most organizations which uses the words “Rosicrucian” or “Rosy Cross” in their name (some of them even trade marking the word “Rosicrucian”) seems to have a very low opinion of magical practice and the magical world view which is common in the Golden Dawn Tradition.

Firstly, the big reason for these “Rosicrucian” organizations to take such a stance against magic is simply out of appeal to the greater mass. In comparison with the organized Golden Dawn community (and also the Thelemic) the big-name “Rosicrucian” organizations have a very large following which may be comparable to world-wide Freemasonry in magintude. Simply put, these “Rosicrucian” organizations are for the many, G∴D∴ is for the few. The level of training and study in any Golden Dawn organization will put most people off who have found comfort in any of the big name “Rosicrucian” organizations. On the other hand, as with Freemasonry, the big name “Rosicrucian” organizations are also quite wealthy and in most cases are able to present very impressive infrastructure and material means to present not only voluminous correspondence courses but also impressive grand scale lodge spacings, etc.

A.M.O.R.C. Temple

I happen to have a past in one of these big name “Rosicrucian” Orders, the A.M.O.R.C. (“Ancient and Mystical Order of the Rosy Cross”), but left that organization because of it frequently branding anything magical or occult as being “superstitious”, and contrasting it to mysticism. I soon went over to the B.O.T.A. (“Builders of the Adytum”), while still being a member of A.M.O.R.C., through some contacts there, and from B.O.T.A. into the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (again through some contacts in the B.O.T.A.), as I lacked instruction on Ceremonial Magic in the former organization; thus out of necessity the one led into the other. The level of study and practice in the B.O.T.A. is on an entire different level compared to A.M.O.R.C. (already in its early levels), and the practical work in the G∴D∴ on yet a higher level of complexity compared to Paul Foster Case’s and Ann Davies’ correspondence courses in the B.O.T.A. Thus, my real WORK began with entering the Hermetic Order Order of the Golden Dawn.

But already in the B.O.T.A. you have traditional occult teaching in its courses which is based upon the Qabalistic and Hermetic system of the Golden Dawn (remember P.F. Case was a former Adept of the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega). One such example is the use of the Tarot (which seems to be lacking in A.M.O.R.C.), and later the Tattwas, which is clearly occult in its orientation. Ann Davies developed this further and made it even more “magical” in its application. In Case’s early papers for the School of Ageless Wisdom and his Chapter (the equivalent of G∴D∴ Temple) papers there are quite a lot of teachings regarding Ceremonial Magic. What Case opposed was the use of “Enochian Magic”, not magic per se. He taught the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram for his Zelatores, as an example.

Paul Foster Case

Secondly, I don’t agree with the dichotomy of labeling something as “mysticism” and branding something other as “magic”. Theurgy truly transcends these two divisions, as it uses the aim of the former through the methodology of the latter. The only difference that I can perceive is that mysticism (at least in the West) tries to separate spirit from matter (soul from body) while magic involves matter as well as spirit. Thus Hermetic and Qabalistic Magic is more akin to Tantric Mysticism which uses “magic” and “alchemy” together with “yoga”, compared to the chaste ascetics of most yogic and Buddhist traditions. But on the other hand, the majority of the yogic practices use the system of the Chakras and Kundalini (the concept of Siva and Shakti), which again makes this more of an alchemico-magical practice than anything else. Thus the division between magic / alchemy on one hand and mysticism on the other is a typical western perspective and relatively late addition, sadly perpetuated through modern “Rosicrucian” organizations such as the A.M.O.R.C.

But I doubt that neither Harvey Spencer Lewis nor his son Ralph M. Lewis, the first Imperatores of A.M.O.R.C., did this out of ignorance but, as I have suggested, because they had the strong ambition of gaining a huge membership. This foremost goal it certainly has succeeded with and also used the financial means gained from this much impressively indeed. Orders of this magnitude have employees and a administrative staff who works full time to run their organization; they resemble corporations. Just take a look at Rosicrucian Park in San Jose, California. But I ask if a large membership roll should count as a true measure stick of a “successful” Rosicrucian Order or tradition? Is there really a need of a “Golden Dawn Park,” how appealing this though may be?

Rosicrucian Park in San Jose

I have no actual ambition to hang out A.M.O.R.C. in particular but rather want to address the phenomenon itself, that of shunning magical practices. As I have a personal experience of A.M.O.R.C. I must use this organization as an example for any big name “Rosicrucian” organization. To their credit, they are the biggest “Rosicrucian” Order to date, and probably will be for quite some time. And in their defense it must be stated that I never advanced past their Atrium (ante chamber) level, which is the equivalent of the Neophyte Grade of the Golden Dawn (the name of “neophyte” being used for members in the Atrium). Thus I have no experience of their Temple work and higher degrees. But I did work as a voluntary in the Nordic Grand Lodge of A.M.O.R.C. and on a daily basis met its leadership for several months. Thus I believe I’m well acquainted with the mentality as may be encountered there, and also of its inner echelons.

Therefore I must ask if the practices taught in the A.M.O.R.C. actually may be branded as typical “mystic”? The so-called “Liber 777” practice is nothing less than the creation of an “astral temple”, which smells lots as occultism if you ask me. Thus the use of imagination has an important place in the A.M.O.R.C. practice, such as in healing work. I also encountered the instruction of keeping a journal of my daily work and was taught the basic principles of meditation, including using the god-form posture. Much of this may also be found in most Golden Dawn based occult shools.

H.S. Lewis

There are also some vague references to Alchemy in the history of A.M.O.R.C., for example a purported Alchemical transmutation of Zinc into Gold made by H.S. Lewis in New York on June 22, 1916. This feat was performed before an audience composed of members of his Order, one scientist and one journalist, who were told that all of the laws necessary for such an accomplishment were clearly stated and explained in the first four degrees of the Order. A chosen group of 15 brought with them selected and secret, but non-toxic, ingredients which was then mixed together. The “transmutation” purportedly took sixteen minutes to perform and inflicted second and third degree burns to Lewis’ hands. Only half of the zinc brought to the meeting was “transmuted” and the other half was used to compare it to the “transmuted gold”. However, the only reference we have of this event was written by H.S. Lewis himself for the organization’s magazine The American Rosae Crucis, so we must take the veracity of this account with more than one pinch of salt. But it is interesting nevertheless, as it shows that the practice of Alchemy is seen as being an integrated part of the Rosicrucian tradition.

Furthermore, A.M.O.R.C. taught alchemy through the 1930’s and 40’s and again in the late 80’s, but in this it used a scientific approach to Alchemy rather than occult. Frater Albertus (Dr. Albert Richard Riedel) was involved in these Alchemical classes, which wasn’t part of the standard curriculum of the A.M.O.R.C. but rather constituted an extracurricular activity that was soly reserved for a selected few. However, reading Frater Albertus’ own works I cannot find much of the A.M.O.R.C. spirit in his books. Albertus clearly appropriated the Qabalistic model according to the Golden Dawn as well.

Frater Albertus

I admire Frater Albertus much, as well as one other former A.M.O.R.C. luminar, Jean Dubuis. The latter fully embraced the Golden Dawn system and even pioneered the revival of the Golden Dawn in France in the late 1970’s. His Qabalah correspondence course is nothing less than a Golden Dawn course, and blends the occult and magical teachings of the latter with that of the invaluable Alchemical courses. The only trace of influence from A.M.O.R.C. in Dubuis’ lessons that I can find is the use of mirrors in some of the meditations. Other than that I also find some Martinist teachings – the way of the heart – as Dubuis seems to have been mostly involved with the Martinist part of A.M.O.R.C. But the greater majority in his courses on Esotericism and the Qabalah is clearly Golden Dawnish.

Regarding Alchemy being scientific, of course it is; it is a science and art. But not “scientific” according to today’s paradigm of positivist empiricism. It is a ‘scientific spirituality’ of a holistic type, which clearly integrates Theurgy into its practice, at least if you study the classics. This doesn’t show in Frater Albertus’ books, but nevertheless in his classic The Alchemist’s Handbook he cites an entire document from a conference held by members of the Gold- und Rosenkreutz Order. This Order, also known by its Latinized name Fraternitas Rosae et Aureae Crucis, or R. et A.C., is the only historically tangible organization we can speak of being “originally Rosicrucian”. As a matter of fact it was at the A.M.O.R.C. facilities in Sweden that I first encountered its much renowned work Geheime Figuren der Rosenkreuzer, aus dem 16ten und 17ten Jahrhundert (“Secret Symbols of the Rosicrucians”) from 1785. This important work, which is quite influential to the Golden Dawn Tradition, was regarded by the A.M.O.R.C. to be a Rosicrucian manifesto, on par with the first two from 1614 and 1615 – Fama et Confessio Fraternitatis. It is interesting to note that this particular German Order not only was greatly admired by H.S. Lewis but also taught and practiced both Alchemy and Magic. The fact is that Theurgy or Magic was the capstone of their entire system – alchemy thus being but a preparation for Theurgy.

The frontespice of Secret Symbols of the Rosicrucians

Thus there is abundant evidence that the practice of ritual magic isn’t contrary to the spirit of Rosicrucianism. On the contrary, Magic, Alchemy and Astrology, called the “Trivium Hermeticum”, must be seen as a whole. Divorce Alchemy away from the other two you will reduce it to a simple “spagery” or “pseudo-chemistry”. The Alchemical credo is “Ora et Labora”, meaning “pray and work”. In this context the prayer is an invocation of the Higher, ergo Theurgy.

This is why I won’t consider the majority of the “Rosicrucian” organizations as representing Hermeticism at all, at least not in the A.M.O.R.C. monographs that I have studied. What is left of Rosicrucianism if you divorce it from its Hermetic roots? There are of course individuals in these organizations that have a good understanding of hermeticism, but I ask if this knowledge of theirs comes from their Order itself? Why isn’t Alchemy taught regularly and in A.M.O.R.C.’s official monographs? Also, why is the Holy Qabalah only taught as an un-official side course as well? What is left of Rosicrucianism if you divorce it from the Qabalah?

Before I end this exposé on Magic in the Rosicrucian tradition, I would like to explain myself why I consider the R. et A.C., or Golden Rosy+Cross, to be “the only historically tangible organization”. With this I mean the “earliest” and “foremost” organization which can be historically proven without a doubt, which has had the most tangible impact upon the Neo-Rosicrucian movement since the middle and late 19th Century (including the A.M.O.R.C. and the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn).

Rosicrucian Philosopher

Regarding the circle in Tübingen and the Die Unzertrennlichen, which is supposed to predate the Golden Rosy+Cross and purportedly to have produced the original Rosicrucian manifestos from the early 17th Century, all we have of “proof” of an actual organization (in contrast to a one man show, perhaps with some aid of friends) is speculations. There surely are prominent individuals from the 16th and 17th Century being seized by a common spirit, but do we have historical proof of them actually being part of a common fraternity? Not by academic criteria. But in the Golden Rosy+Cross we actually have traces and facts which may be proven historically, or at least being worthy of historical research. That’s why I am referring to them as the “only historically tangible organization”.

Regarding the earliest date of their origin, let me again direct the attention of the reader to the Latinized name for the Golden Rosy+Cross, the Fraternitas Rosae et Aureae Crucis (which was in use by the German 18th Century Golden Rosicrucians). The Samuel Richter (who used the pseudonym ‘Sincerus Renatus’) pamphlet Bereitung des Philosophischen Steins der Brüderschaft aus dem Orden des Gülden-und Rosen-Creutzes (“The True Preparation of the Philosopher’s Stone of the Fraternity of the Golden Rosy Cross”), dated from 1710, isn’t the earliest source of this name. I suggest looking at this little paper written by the renowned Swedish scholar Susanna Åkerman. Thus we see here a possible Italian circle of alchemists referring to themselves as the Golden Rosy+Cross. This evidence taken together with the legendary book Thesaurus Thesaurorum A Fraternitate Rosæ et Aureæ Crucis Testamento Anno 1580 creates a quite solid picture of a Golden Rosy+Cross Order which predates Samuel Richter’s pamphlet by at least a half century.

The frontespice of a secret document of the Philosopus Grade

The book Thesaurus Thesaurorum, which is brimmed with alchemical and theurgical operations (of which one is very similar to the so-called “Abra-Melin operation”), and which may have an Italian origin, dates itself back to 1580. However historians often consider that being a typo for 1680. A.E. Waite, who was something of a sceptic to most extravagand claims, suggests this even being a typo for 1780. However, in this particular case, Waite was clearly prejudical. Christopher MacIntosh, the author of The Rose Cross and the Age of Reason, has the following to say regarding the Thesaurus Thesaurorum:

An important manuscript in this connection is the “Testamentum der Fraternitet Roseae et Aureae Crucis” in the Austrian National Library, Vienna. This is clearly based on Sincerus Renatus, or on the same sources from which he drew, since many of the rules and procedures in it, such as the forms of greeting, are identical to those described by Renatus. At the same time there are significant changes. For example Renatus gives the total number of brethren as 63, while the Testamentum raises it to 77. As to the date, a note on one of the endpapers records that the manuscript was acquired by Johann Adalbert, Prinz de Buchau [sic], in 1735.

First of all, MacIntosh says that Samuel Richter’s “A True Preparation” and the “Thesaurus Thesaurorum” can be based upon a common source as well, predating both manuscripts. In this regard I fully agree with him. Secondly, the date 1735 clearly dismisses 1780 as the actual date. Most scholars that I have read believes it to be from 1680. I personally believe it to predate 1710, and perhaps even 1680. I have a friend who is a Swedish scholar and he clearly believes that Samuel Richter was initiated into the Italian branch of the Golden Rosy+Cross. I have no reason to disbelieve him, nor any of MacIntosh’s or Åkerman’s findings.

Personally I believe there indeed was a network of early initiates which may be called “Rosicrucian”, writing pamphlets and manifestos, etc., such as the Tübingen circle from late 16th and early 17th Century. The Golden Rosy+Cross of late 17th Century Italy (and possible France), and of 18th Century Germany, represents the next phase of the Rosicrucian movement, which ties in to the first wave as represented by the Fama Fraternitatis. We see initiates who has become disillusioned and have their foundations shaken by the Thirty Years War. We see initiates who are disappointed by the Lutheran reformation, which has taken religion back to the letter of the Holy Book, threatens with damnation in hell and shuns mysticism. We also see initiates who watches an “enlightenment”, initially showing promise (remember that alchemists like Isaac Newton pioneered modern science and Descartes openly applied for membership to the Rosicrucian Order) but now instead disrespecting and deriding spirituality, religion, and especially the occult arts, such as astrology, magic and alchemy; simply put becoming “god-less”.

Movements and philosophies change, and adapts to the currents of time, also the Rosicrucian one. We see in the Golden Rosy+Cross a movement who wants to trace their tradition back to the roots of Hermeticism and the Qabalah. We see a movement who emphasizes the practice of operational Alchemy and Theurgy (Magic), in contrast to both organized religion and empirical positivist science, who believes in a tangible transformation of natural humanity into divinity. Not metaphorically but actually, comparable to the Eastern traditions (remember Samuel Richter’s allusion to the original Brethren moving to India). According to Christopher MacIntosh, the Golden Rosy+Cross represents a movement which must be considered being a third force in relation to the Catholic Church and enlightenment. I happen to agree with him.

The Alpha et Omega

I don’t believe the Golden Rosy+Cross to be Catholic at all, as sometimes has been asserted, but rather all inclusive when it comes to the Christian religion (admitting both Catholics and Lutherans, and what ever). If anything, I would label the German Golden Rosy+Cross as Pietist (which is a Lutheran reformation within the reformation). If anything, the Golden Rosy+Cross wanted a further reformation of Christianity, or at least attracted Christians of this bent (such as the pietists). The Fratres Lucis (which grew out of the Golden Rosy+Cross) even went futher to include also the Jewish.

Thus I prefer to look upon the Thirty Years Wars (the actual First World War) as a calcination of European culture, ideology, philosophy, etc. I believe it is hard for us today to understand what impact that war had upon the mentality of the European mind, especially amongst the intellectuals (and thus initiates); one may compare this with how the Second Word War has changed the European mentality. The Rosicrucian pamphlets between 1614-16 represent a stance typical prior to the outbreak of the War (polemicising to the extreme), while the Golden Rosy+Cross of Italy and Germany represents the post War mentality (weary of conflict, trying to see a common unity within the Christian world).

Strangely enough, one doesn’t find any traces at all relating to the Christian religion nor to Christian symbolism in the teachings of the above mentioned big-name “Rosicrucian” organizations, contrary to the Ordo Rosae Rubeae et Aureae Crucis (R.R. et A.C.), Golden Dawn’s Second or Inner Order, which continues the Rosicrucian tradition of the Fraternitas Rosae et Aureae Crucis (R. et A.C.).

S∴R∴

En dag på British Museum

o

För drygt en vecka sedan var jag och min familj (de syns på några av bilderna som följer) på besök i London under en dag och då passade vi naturligtvis på att besöka British Museum för första gången i mitt liv. Eftersom museet är så stort, och med tanke på små barn och ett i övrigt hektiskt schema där allas önskemål skall förverkligas – där pappa (undertecknad) endast fick ett par timmar till sitt förfogande – bestämnde jag mig tidigt att endast besöka den egyptiska avdelningen och John Dee-montern (givna attraktionsmål för en ockultist som mig). Vad som följer är de bilder jag tog från vår lilla runda, något som jag skulle vilja dela med mig med mina läsare. Bilderna presenteras i den följdordning som de uppenbarar sig för besökaren när denne går igenom den egyptiska avdelningen. Texterna som bifogas innehåller information som jag har hämtat till största del från British Museums hemsida.


Den inledande bilden (Bild 1) förevisar själva ingången till den stora salen där delar av den egyptiska avdelningen är samlad. De två stora granodiorit-statyerna förevisar Amenhotep III, en farao som figurerar ganska ofta i utställningen (Bild 2 & 4). Bild 2 förevisar en närbild på den vänstra av dessa statyer som är hämtad från Amehotep III:s gravtempel i Thebes, från 18:e Dynastin runt 1350 f.v.t. Bild 4 förevisar ett huvud av samma farao tagen från en jättestaty av granit som (uppenbarligen huvudlös) fortfarande står kvar i Egypten vid ett Tempel vigt åt gudinnan Mut. Engelsmännen hade tydligen inte möjlighet att ta med sig hela statyn utan tog med sig huvudet istället.


Bild 3 förevisar en mycket vacker attrappdörr tillverkad i kalksten från en gravkammare tillhörande översteprästen Ptahshepses. Denna präst var en av de kungliga barnen till Menkaure och Shepseskaf, de sista två stora konungarna av den Fjärde Dynastin. Det verkar som att Ptahshepses levde från cirka 2490 till cirka 2400 f.v.t. Falska dörrar av detta slag var vanligt förekommande i kungliga gravkammare.

Bild 5 förevisar en exemplar på en mycket vacker lotuspelare, vilket är ganska talande för nivån på den storartade arkitekturiska byggnadskonsten som var förärskande i antikens Egypten.

Vad som följer i Bild 6 är fyra statyer i granit föreställande gudinnan Sekhmet, hämtade från Karnak i Thebes, från den 18:e Dynastin runt 1360 f.v.t. Dessa gudagestalter upplevdes som mycket kraftfulla och verkade som en magnet både på mig och min fru. Medan jag koncentrerade mig på att ta mina bilder på denna del av avdelningen satt min Soror Mystica i meditation och upplevde en starkt attraherande kraft från stayerna på Sekhmet. Även jag kände mig hela tiden attraherad av dem. De är helt makalösa exempel på Egyptiskt konsthantverk och utgjorde det ensamt starkaste objektet i hela museet av det som jag hann att se på rundvandringen. Mot slutet av den egyptiska avdelningen fanns ytterligare en vacker staty på Sekhmet från samma tidsperiod (Bild 16), men denna gudagestalt gjorde inte alls ett lika kraftfullt intryck på mig, även om den var estetiskt tilltalande. Vad som är särskilt attraherande med samtliga av dessa statyer på Sekhmet och de på Amehotep III (Bilderna 1 & 2) är det mörka stenmaterialet och den oerhörda detaljrikedom hantverkarna har lagt på att skapa de stilrena linjerna och den perfekt släta ytan.

Alldeles intill statyerna på Sekhmet stog en mycket vacker staty i kalksten av Amenhopet I i formen av Osiris, från den 18:e Dynastin runt 1510 f.v.t. Den hämtades ursprungligen från ett Tempel i Deir el-Bahari troligtvis helgat åt Hathor som inte existerar längre. Denna gudagestalt hade också en stark attraktionskraft på mig personligen. Tyvärr är bilden (Bild 7) taget på denna staty något oskarp.

Bild 8 förevisar en liten staty av brun kvartsit av den heliga egyptiska babianen, helgat åt visdomsguden Thoth från Hermopolis. Den är tillverkad någon gång under Amenhotep den III:s regeringstid (1390-1352 f.v.t.) under den 18:e Dynastin, troligtvis runt 1350 f.v.t. och har antagligen hysts i hans gravtempel. Denna staty var också en av de mer attraktiva objekten under utställningen. Tyvärr förevisas här extra tydligt mina bristande fotografiska färdigheter.

Bilderna 9 och 10 förevisar Rosettastenen hämtad från Fort St Julien, el-Rashid (Rosetta), i närheten av Alexandria. Stenen är 112,3 × 75,7 × 28,4 cm i sina dimensioner och väger 750 kg. Den tillverkades under den senare ptolemaiska perioden år 196 f.v.t. och hittades av franska soldater år 1799 under Napoleons egyptiska fälttåg. Det som är så speciellt med denna sten, och som har gjort den till de mest intressanta arkeologiska artefakterna, är att den råkar hysa tre texter med samma innehåll på två olika språk, fornegyptiska och grekiska. Egyptiskan är skrivet dels med hieroglyfer och dels demotisk skrift. Detta faktum gjorde det möjligt för den franske egyptologen Jean-François Champollion att år 1822 till slut efter mycket möda dechiffrera hieroglyferna. Sedan dess har egyptologer kunnat uttyda de fornegyptiska texterna, såsom den Egyptiska Dödsboken, etc. Dess glasmonter, som stog halvvägs längs den egyptiska avdelningen och avgränsade dess första och andra sektion, var den ensamt folktätatste delen av museet och det tog ett tag innan jag kunde ta mig fram för att ta dessa bilder. I närbilden (Bild 10) kan man tydligt se de tre typerna av skrift, de Egyptiska hieroglyferna längst upp, den demotiska skriften i mitten och grekiskan längst ner.

Bilderna 11 till 19 förevisar den avslutande sektionen av den egyptiska avdelningen. Här förevisas tre stensarkofager (Bilderna 11, 12 och 15) och egyptiska pelare, förutom en massa mindre statyer och andra artefakter. I Bild 11 förevisas Merymoses sarkofag. Merymose var vice-regent i Kush (Övre Nubien) under Amenhotep III:s styre. Endast sarkofagens lock har kunnat rekonstrueras. Avbildningen visar att den avlidne identifieras med Osiris, dödsguden. Sidorna är täckta med magiska formler för att hjälpa Marymose på hans hädanfärd. Sarkofagen återfanns år 1940 i Qurnet Marai.

Bild 12 förevisar ytterligare en granitsarkofag, denna från Alexandria och tillhörande Nectanebo II, vilket var den siste infödde Egyptiske konungen som regerade åren 360-343 f.v.t. Sarkofagen återfanns under Napoleons Egyptiska expedition i Kairo. En pelare från Templet i Heryshef, Herakleopolis, syns i bakgrunden, såväl som en liten staty av Horus, den solara falkguden, vid dess sida. Bilderna 13 och 14 visar två närbilder på samma falk.

Bild 15 förevisar den vackraste av sarkofagerna som fångade mitt stora intresse under denna sektionen av den egyptiska avdelningen. I synnerhet insidan är faschinerande och vacker att beskåda. Sarkofagen tillhör en Hapmen från Kairo, som levde under den 26:e Dynastin eller senare, någonstans mellan åren 600-300 f.v.t. Det går knappat att se på bilden (och endast om man klickar på den och ser den i förstoring) men om du tittar på sarkofagens botten kommer du att se en avbildning av en person som ligger med armarna utsträckta, på samma vis som i Tecknet för den Dräpte Osiris i Golden Dawn-traditionen.


Hapmens sarkofag användes senare för rituell tvagning i en moské i Ibn Tulun. Därav avtappningshålet som syns vid den bortre änden. Även Nectanebo II:s sarkofag (Bild 12) hade flera avtappningshål och hade använts på samma sätt i moskén vid Attarin, Alexandria. Nectanebo II:s sarkofag var också mytomspunnen då den sades ha varit självaste Alexander den Stores kista, något som vederlades efter att hieroglyferna lyckades att uttydas. De innehåller istället delar från texten Amduat, eller ’Boken om det som finns i Undervärlden’ (dödsriket).

Bild 17 förevisar en jättelik skarabé stort som ett modernt badkar, ca. 1,5 meter i diameter. Skarabén är Egyptens helige skalbagge, eller pillerbagge, betecknande för solen under sin nattliga färd under jorden eller solen just innan eller under sin uppgång på himmelen. Detta exemplar av diorit beräknas ha tillverkats under den ptolemaiska perioden mellan åren 332-30 f.v.t. En faschinerande pjäs som förtjänade att bli fotograferad. Tyvärr är detta kanske mitt sämst tagna fotografi.

Bild 18 förevisar en vacker och mystisk granitartifakt som jag först trodde var en symbolisk portal av något slag. Den var inbjudande och jag stog länge och försökte förstå mig på den. Det visar sig att det egentligen är ett naos, den centrala helgedomen i ett Tempel vari kultfiguren hystes som utgjorde medelpunkten för den dagliga kult-ritualen utfört av prästerskapet. Detta exemplar är taget från ön Philae under Ptolemaus VIII regeringstid, runt 150 f.v.t. Den återfanns senare återanvänt i en koptisk kyrka på samma ö.

Det är typiskt hur ofta egyptiska religiösa artefakter har återanvändts av både kristna kyrkor och muslimska moskéer efter den antika egyptiska religionens utslocknande. Uppenbart hyste människor stor respekt för det gamla Egyptens reliker, även under vår tideräkning. Som jag har redogjort för ovan så är dessa artifakter högt laddade med kraft som har fortsatt att attrahera och faschinera efterföljande generationer.

Den sista bilden (Bild 19) tagen i den egyptiska avdelningen är den på en av de vackra sfinxerna tillverkade någon gång under det romerska styret av Egypten, allt enligt informationen bredvid statyerna. De har en tydlig grekisk eller hellenistisk utformning. Där fanns två sfinxer som stog i varsin monter (den andre kan ses i bakrunden på Bild 19) och de flankerade den bakre utgången från den egyptiska avdelningen.

Några avslutande ord om gudagestalten på Sekhmet (Bilderna 6 & 16). Denna gudinna associerades av egypterna med förgörelse. Enligt myten symboliserade hon det eldiga ögat hos solguden Ra vilket han sände gentemot sina fiendet. I en av myterna sätts hon iväg att straffa mänskligheten och hinner nästan i sin blodtröst, likt syndaflodsmyten i Bibeln och andra liknande myter över hela världen, att förgöra mänskligheten men stoppas i sista stund genom att gudarna lurar henne att dricka ur en sjö som är fylld med öl som har fåtts att se ut som blod, varmed hon förvandlas till Hathor, kärlekens gudinna. Sekhmet är en mycket stark gudinnekraft och feminin kraft som även sades härska över menstruationen. Hennes namn betyder ”hon som är kraftfull”. Hon var en av faraon Amenhotep III:s favoritgudinnor som lät bygga många statyer av henne under sin regeringstid.


Avslutningsvis tog jag min familj till den s.k. King’s Library på andra sidan av British Museum, vilket förevisas på bilden vid huvudet på denna redogörelse. Det är nämligen i denna sal där John Dees monter är förlagt. Montern med John Dees utställning kan ses på bildens vänstra sida, precis bortom det stora ljusgråa stenfatet. Detta förevisningsobjekt var egentligen det huvudsakliga målet för detta besök på museet. I vanlig ordning skall man spara det bästa till sist!

Den engelska texten i skylten innuti montern tycker jag presenterar karaktären och fenomenet John Dee bättre än jag själv hade kunnat göra, så jag återger den här:

This group of strange objects is associated with John Dee (1527-1608/9), mathematician, astrologer and magician during the reign of Queen Elisabeth I. A respected if controversial figure in his own lifetime, Dee is now best remembered for his experiments in conjuring up divine spirits using some of the objects displayed here.

A number of Dr. Dee’s materials came to the British Museum via the antiquary and collector Sir Robert Cotton who aquired them after Dee’s death. The large disc, called the ‘Seal of God’ is engraved with magical names and symbols. Dee used it as a support for his ‘Shew Stone’, in which his medium allegedly saw visions of divine beings unveiling the secrets of the universe. The two smaller discs are said to have supported Dee’s ‘Table of Practice’. The golden disc is engraved with the so-called ‘Vision of the Four Castles’. The black obsidian mirror originally a Mexican Aztec cult object, was used for conjuring up spirits. Its fitted case bare a label in the hand of Horace Walpole, the famous 18th century author and collector who once owned it.

Bilderna 20 till 24 förevisar sålunda självaste John Dee-utställningen, eller det som är kvar av den. Obsidian-skivan med tillhörande fodral, som det refereras till i texten ovan, är borttagen sedan ett tag tillbaka. När min fru besökte British Museum 1999 hade hon förmånen att få se denna. Jag vet inte hur länge den har varit frånvarande från utställningen men det kan knappas ha varit så länge med tanke på att skylten fortfarande är oförändrad. Vi har dock fortfarande det stora vaxsigillet kallat Sigillum Dei Aemeth eller ”Sigillet för Guds Sanning” (visat i närbild på Bild 23) varpå kristallkulan placerades, vilket syns till vänster på Bild 20 och i närbild på Bild 21. Det stora Sigillet placerades på ”Det Heliga Bordet” var vart och ett av de fyra benen vilade på var sitt vaxsigill i miniatyr (vilket var en kopia av det större). Två av dessa förevisas i montern och ett av dem kan ses i närbild (Bild 24). Vi ser också den gyllene skivan som förevisar de fyra Vakttornen, och även denna kan ses i (tyvärr tämligen suddiga) närbilder i Bilderna 21 och 22.



Jag är ganska så nöjd med bilden (Bild 23) på det stora vaxsigillet eller Sigillum Dei Aemeth. Något som gjorde mig tämligen förvånad var hur stort detta sigill egentligen är. Jag bedömer att det är runt 20 cm i diameter, större än jag har fått det beskriven för mig tidigare eller efter att ha sett moderna återskapningar av det på Internet. Vissa individer måste har blandat ihop det stora vaxsigillet med de mindre vaxsigillen, varav ett förevisas i närbild (Bild 24), då de senares storlek (runt en decimeter i diameter) mer motsvarar vad jag trodde att Sigillum Dei Aemeth var.



Nu när jag sitter och skriver om detta och tittar på bilderna igen så känns det lite surrealistiskt att ha sett dessa magiska redskap som brukades av John Dee och hans skådare Edward Kelly, ett magiskt system som jag själv har haft nytta av under de senaste två decennierna i den omarbetade form som framställdes av Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.

En annan religiös artefakt förevisades också i samma monter som John Dee-utställningen (monterns tema var magiska artefakter), ett sistrum (Bild 25) eller en rituell skallra av brons helgat åt egyptiska gudinnan Isis. Efter Romarrikets erövring av Egypten år 30 e.v.t. spred sig Isis-mysterierna över hela det Romerska Europa och Tempel till Isis ära restes som ofta avbildade henne med detta redskap, och just detta examplar är hittat utanför Rom. Jag tänkte jag skulle ta med denna bild då den bl.a. brukades av S.L. MacGregor Mathers och hans fru Moina Mathers vid deras uppsättningar av Isis Mysterierna i Paris vid början av det förra seklet. Om någon skulle få för sig att återuppföra dessa så kan denne se hur ett sistrum borde vara utformad.

Efter det tämligen hastiga besöket på British Museum passade vi på att besöka det legendariska Atlantis Bookshop, som ligger precis utanför Museet, lämpligt beläget på 49a Museum Street. Många ockultister finner det naturligt att avsluta en tur på British Museum med ett besök på Atlantis, så också jag och min fru. Bokaffären är ovanligt välsorterat på ockult litteratur och är befriad från de vanliga New Age-attributen. Men affären är i synnerhet av intresse för en student av Golden Dawn eftersom den hyser två intressanta ”artefakter”, av vilket den ena är en samling med magiska redskap i original från första hälften av det förra seklet (Bild 26). Ägarinnan Geraldine Beskin gav mig efter viss övertalning tillåtelse att ta ett foto på redskapen, efter att jag hade låtit henne avsluta sin föreläsning om redskapen och en viss annan Golden Dawn-relaterad målning hon hade för utställning.

Enligt Geraldine Beskin utgjorde Lotusstaven och det Magiska Svärdet en del av den samling som hittades på Brightons strand 1967 i en kista. Enligt Francis King i boken Ritual Magic in England så hade dessa redskap låsts i en kista och begravts på en klippa vid havet efter ett Tempel i Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega hade stängts på 1940-talet. Enligt King hade klippan till slut givit efter och kistan kastats ut i havet, varpå det sköjdes upp på stranden och återfanns av förbipasserade. Tydligen har en del av dessa redskap hamnat i Atlantis Bookshop om vi skall tro på ägarinnans utsago. Hon sa till mig att Lotusstaven (längst till vänster) och Svärdet hade ett motto från en Golden Dawn-adept inskrivna. Eldstaven längst till höger på Bild 26 visste hon dock inte vart den härstammade från eller vem den hade tillhört då den inte utgjorde en del av samma samling som de föregående redskapen. Men i mina ögon såg de samtliga tämligen autentiska ut, även om jag inte hade möjligheten att granska dem närmare. Ett fotografi tog jag i alla fall som jag bifogar nedan för läsarens nöje.


Avslutningsvis vill jag be om ursäkt för den dåliga bildkvaliteten i vissa av fotografierna. Tyvärr är jag inte speciellt bra fotograf (även om jag har tagit en fotokurs för några år sedan) och kameran jag hade fått med mig var lånad och därför lät jag endast per rekommendation av ägaren kamerans autofunktion styra skärpa och bländare. Av någon anledning använde jag heller aldrig kamerans blixt vilket delvis förklarar den dåliga skärpan i några av bilderna. Jag hoppas ändå att mina läsare skall få något nöje och nytta ut av bilderna och de bifogade texterna, den dåliga bildkvaliteten till trots.

S∴R∴