Golden Dawn Besieged

by Alpha Omega Imperator

David Griffin

The opposition has once again attacked our lineage. Do not be deceived. They are attacking me personally and by extension the Alpha Omega. They are not attacking lineage as a legitimate mechanism. The lineage attack is just the medium. 

This is something to rejoice as one day, these very people will pass on their Order to their best student and that student will not be obligated to piss all over their teacher in an attempt to demonstrate that lineage is nonsense. If they truly believed lineage is nonsense, they would be teaching their students to ignore what they are taught, to change it on a whim, that there are no true principles in magick or mysticism. It's all just made up stuff that works for you or doesn't, just do whatever you like.

Perhaps they are teaching this to their top students, I can't know. If they are, is that the school for you? Do you want to join an Order that stipulates that a school or a teacher has nothing to pass on except a few good ideas that might, or might not, work for you? That trashing your teacher, your school, and the ways in which you were taught is good practice? 

Such a thought would be a tragedy. I was taught that the way a student treats his or her teacher is an indication of that person's character. When I read some of these other magical leaders showing disdain and disrespect for their lineage, however grand or humble it may be, it saddens me. I can only hope after my transition, my best students won't feel the need to say such things. That is why I work every day to make this Order, the AO, the best it can be.

Why are these people so threatened by the AO? Because they know that you want to practice magick and become a magician. You see, they are not really attacking me because they care about me or the AO. They attack us because they also know that our devoted purpose is to make magicians. Allow me to lay out a possible history.

The reason the Golden Dawn was created was to fulfill the desires of practicing mystics of that time. There was a longing in the hearts of occult students of that time for something more pragmatic, more practical, than mystical devotions. To satisfy this longing, the founders of the Golden Dawn created a unique approach to magical work that forever changed the world.

While magicians remained true to their practices, the pendulum always swings and mysticism once again became vogue. The introduction of Zen and Yoga into Western society along with the hippie movement of the 60s reinvigorated the mystic schools. During this time, many Golden Dawn practioners, following in the footsteps of Waite, converted their schools to the ways of the mystic or the New Age practices. This was good strategic positioning at the time. Students flowed in and book sales have boomed. I am not suggesting they did this only to win students and sell books. Many were sincere, many still are sincere. Mysticism is a wonderful path and for some, it is the right path. God (the gods) has been good to humans by providing so many ways to unite with Him (them).

However, as the century turned, many of these mystics have once again begun to look for results. After years of mystic practice, they often wonder where are the results? While they may feel closer to God (or the gods), their lives were still unfulfilled. Now that magick is once again gaining in popularity, these mystic schools have lost their connection to those methods. They have positioned themselves so well as mystic schools that they cannot (or will not) return to magick. We at the AO have held our ground as magicians. We realize that there will be times when the people want magick and times when they will seek mysticism. It matters little to us if there are thousands of seekers or just one. Our mission remains the same - to make magicians."

Our Curriculum

In the Alpha Omega, we began in 1999 to improve our curriculum to bring it more in line with our mission to make Magicians. Whereas other Golden Dawn orders make students wait 4-5 years until they reach the Inner Order to give them any real Ritual Magick instruction, the AO teaches Magick from day one. We next added vast amounts of advanced Hermetic Magickal practices to our curriculum unique to the Alpha Omega.

Our Methods

We set out early on to improve our methods and continue to strive to do so even today. In 2002, we  adopted the structure of an on-line university when we opened AO Academy of Magick for distance students, yet preserving traditional Golden Dawn initiation in real G.D. temples.

Continuing Improvement

The AO strives continuously to improve both our curriculum and our methods. We have come a long way since 2002, but the methods of on-line universities have evolved over the past decade as well. We therefore have a professional academic team today again improving our curriculum, incorporating the latest methods in on-line education. This improved curriculum is presently in beta-testing and will be ready for order-wide release in 2014. 

So why are our opponents so threatened by the Alpha Omega?

It is our unique mission, methods, and curriculum.

Does this mean that the Alpha Omega is the "best" Golden Dawn order - or that we have a monopoly on truth?

Of course not - only we do things differently!

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