Does Astral-only Initiation Work? Consensus Among Golden Dawn Experts

The discussion regarding the alleged benefits and limitations of "Astral-only" Initiation, created by Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn leader, Robert Zink, has gone on for years in the Golden Dawn community and resurfaces from time to time. This time the discussion has been revived again in a blog article by Mr. Zink.

The fundamental question is whether or not anyone can be exclusively astrally initiated at a distance.

Proponents of Astral-only initiation claim that a group or people (or a Temple) can initiate a person by perfoming a ritual somewhere else for a person separated by geographical distance, allegedly initiating the candidate by reading off their name in Temple during the ritual. Other claims made by proponents of Astral-only initiation include:

1. Astral Initiation accomplishes everything that traditional Golden Dawn initiation does
2. The original (pre 1903) Golden Dawn practiced Astral Initiation.
3. Critics of Astral-only Initiation do not understand that all magick takes place on the Astral Plane.
4. Astral Initiation helps those who would otherwise not have access to Golden Dawn initiation.

Let's examine what various leaders and members of the Golden Dawn community have said about these claims over the years. To begin with, the late Frater Donald Michael Kraig, in an article entitled Ritual and Ritual Theater wrote here:

"Some events are both ritual and ritual theater. For example, in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, initiation rituals involved a group of officers and the initiate. However, there could also be an audience that participated very little in the ritual. So the actual initiation is both ritual and ritual theater. The involvement of others and their energy, as well as the initiate seeing the activity of others and of the temple, makes the very concept of “astral initiations” into the Golden Dawn dubious at best."

There have been numerous other voices in the Golden Dawn community who have spoken out about the ritual theater aspect of Golden Dawn initiation over the years. In March, 2009 Open Source Golden Dawn Chief, Joseph Max, wrote in a post that you can still read here):

"The Hall of the Neophytes is full of much interlocking symbolism designed to have a specific effect on the Aspirant at the point at which they "light up.". Any ritual of High Magic is a work of psycho-dramatic performance art. All Ritual is Drama, as all Drama is Ritual (ask the ancient Greeks.) It is powerful Magic in and of itself. 

So... if the Awakening of the Body of Light *is* Initiation (the first one anyway,) it doesn't matter how it comes about, even spontaneously. But *Golden Dawn* Initiation is a sub-set of this phenomena; it's aimed in a definite and unique direction down a particular Path of Attainment. It comes from the Neo-Platonic tradition of Ritual Drama, so the powerful effects of psycho-drama are part of the system. It's a "play" performed for an "audience" of one. 

Therefore the question comes down to: can a Golden Dawn Initiation, that will effectively awaken the Body of Light AND point the Aspirant down the unique Path the Golden Dawn School follows, be accomplished *without* the live dramatic component, and the personal involvement of the Aspirant in that performance? 

Personally speaking, I think it would be difficult. It's certainly possible to accomplish psycho-dramatic impact with solo visualization (in fact it's one of the things a Golden Dawn school teaches,) but for a rank beginner without any background to do it? That would be a rare talent." 

On the question of the ritual theater aspect of Golden Dawn initiation, former Hyperborean Adept, Sincerus Renatus wrote here:

"The ritual is a drama, a play, which also has as a function to impart a though form or cognitive structure into the candidate, a theme so to speak, which gives a tone or atmosphere for the Grade. This has to be experienced live and in person, not read through or imagined in the inner eye. Compare this to reading a novel and watching a stage play; two legitimate artistic expressions but quite different in nature and quality. Full and physical initiation is a stage play of old Greek dramatic proportions."

On this same subject, Golden Dawn member, "Polimetis," writes here:

"[Proponents of Astral-only initiation] always argue that Initiation is not Theatre and is all about the astral (forgetting, as you say, the importance of basic psycological and emotional impact!)? Well, actually, ancient Drama comes directly from the Dyonisian and Eleusinian Mysteries, and Tragic Festivals continued to be a sacred ceremony and a sacred experience for the Athenians, which is, actually comparable to intiation ceremonies (especially masonic high degrees where only a few of the candidates participate, and most are just onlookers!). 

I'll bet no one in ancient Greece could say that if the director mentions the name of an Athenian citizen that was out of town, before the perfomance of a Tragedy, would ‘astrally” experience the awe and pity that the tragedy inspired, and the psycologically healthy Catharthic effect of actually seeing the sacred perfomance!" 

I am pleased to see that not only Donald Michael Kraig's independent research, based on so many years of magical experience, but also the independent research of Joseph Max, Sincerus Renatus, and Polimetis support my own conclusion that Astral-only Initiation does not accomplish everything that traditional Golden Dawn initiation does.

Let us move on to examine the claim made by proponents of Astral-only initiation that the original (pre 1903) Golden Dawn or its offshoots practiced Astral Initiation.

Noted magical author, Nick Farrell (Chief Adept of the Magical Order of Aurora Aurorae), writes here:

"If astral initiation was used within the GD there would be some evidence of it... If an astral initiation was taking place then where and when and why did it not leave a trace of paperwork? There are no records of astral initiations being performed, nor any members who are identified as being part of the GD who had their initiations astrally recorded. Nor is there any mention of the procedure being used in the various editions of by-laws, nor any diary notes from anyone saying that they had taken part in an astral initiation. While we have access to many different GD rituals, there are no recorded instructions for how to perform one..."

"Occam’s razor tells us that if all the evidence suggests that we have to assume that it is logical that the Golden Dawn did not perform astral initiations." 

Golden Dawn scholar, Samuel Scarborough, chief of the Ordo Stella Matutina Golden Dawn writes here:

"I think of myself as something of a scholar on the GD as well as a serious student of the GD system. The same can be said for Nick Farrell or Imhotep, or several others that say that these astral initiations are not verifiable, nor were they done in the original GD or AO or SM after the 1903 Schism in the regular sense. There is no evidence for “astral” or long-distance initiation from those orginal bodies.

I disagree with certain groups that claim that these astral (long-distance) initiations were commonplace within the original Golden Dawn. I have never seen the evidence to support the claim. Nor can I think that Westcott, Woodman, and Mathers received some astral initiation as founders of the GD in the first place."

I am pleased to see that again the independent research of Nick Farrell and Sam Scarborough support my conclusion that the original Golden Dawn did not practice Astral-only Initiation. There appears to be a wide consensus in the Golden Dawn community regarding claims made by proponents of Astral-only initiation. Mr. Zink has been invited over and over to provide evidence to support his thesis that the original Golden Dawn practiced Astral only initiation. He has so far failed to provide even one shred of evidence to support this odd claim.

Let us move on to examine their claim that critics of Astral-only Initiation do not understand that all magick takes place on the Astral Plane.

In this regard, Nick Farrell says here:

"Physical initiations have an astral component. But if you mean do I think it is possible for someone to initiate you into the 0=0 grade of the Golden Dawn without you being there I would say that it is unlikely. I would say that it would take a supremely good magician (angelic being, or secret chief) to be able to do that. I do not think that simply performing the ritual with a stand-in is enough."

On Nick Farrell's blog, Golden Dawn member, "Magician," also addresses this claim here:

"The discussion isn’t about whether or not magic can work at long distance. The discussion is about if initiation ceremonies can work long distance where there is no way to infuse the physical symbols into the aspirant’s sphere of sensation."

I have addressed this issue numerous times over the years as well. For example, I write here:

"No one is disputing that there is an astral component to both initiation and magick. However, what proponents of Astral Initiation do not understand is that this astral element is rooted in the physical body. They reach a completely erroneous conclusion that, merely because an astral component is there in initiation, they can make you a full Golden Dawn initiate from the comfort of your armchair on the other end of the world..."

Proponents of Astral Initiation allege that it accomplishes everything traditional, physical Golden Dawn initiation does. Golden Dawn leader, Peregrin Wildoak comments in this regard here:

"I do think since the GD initiations were designed for phsyicality, and some of the important parts are done physicially, the control a phsyical initiation has to produce an inner experience for the initiate is beyond anything an astral initiation can do."

Donald Michael Kraig writes here:

"The true astral initiation occurs when both you and the higher initiation forces/energies/spirits of the group are ready for it to happen. No sooner. No later. The physical initiation may help it occur sooner, perhaps simultaneous to the physical initiation. But because so many people these days want to be initiated, some groups have specialized in offering astral initiations. But are they valid within the Western Mystery Tradition? 

If you take someone with little or no training and tell them to visualize walking around a triangle (as I was for an Order a long time ago), the answer is decidedly NO!" 

... and ...

"This means that although so-called “astral initiations” sold to you may make you a member of a group (and allowed to pay them nice big yearly or monthly dues), on a spiritual basis it usually is meaningless."

Nick Farrell adds here:

"A physical initiation is an intensely emotional experience with physical and emotional reactions that have a deep impact on the person. For an initiation to have any impact, such a person should be able to feel something, if not at the immediate time, but in their dreams immediately afterwards. However the reports of people who have undergone astral initiations ... have been extremely nebulous or non-existent (or) have included comments which were so nebulous that they are more likely to be psychosomatic or wish-self-fulfillment."

Samuel Scarborough has this to say here:

"Does long-distance (astral) initiation work? Well, I would say that at best it would be dubious... My concern, and most whom disagree with long-distance initiation, is that there is no way to verify that the person being initiated is actually receiving the energy due to the gap between the initiating body and the candidate."

Golden Dawn Adept, V.H. Frater P. commented here:

"What i miss in this debate is the simple fact that, apart from the energetic transmission from the Hierophant unto the candidate, it is impossible to impregnate the MIND of the candidate with the physical symbols that are displayed in these ceremonies. For doing this, the candidate has to be physically present, and able to use his eyes! Moreover, by blindfolding him/her and exposing him to a dramatic procedure, his mind is made extra sensitive and absorptive. This is an ancient technique."

Enochian Magick author, Scott Stenwick, wrote here:

"My issue here is not that magical force is impossible to transmit over a distance. Rather, mystery traditions make use of a specific piece of psychological technology, the cultivation of cognitive dissonance through uncertainty. If, going into an initiation, you have absolutely no idea what is going to happen, the mind enters a state that is both hypervigilant and more open to suggestion. A good mystery tradition initiation, then, takes advantage of this unusual state of mind to imprint the principles taught by the degree. While there should also be spiritual forces brought to bear during the ritual, the imprinted memory of the experience serves as a sort of "anchor" within the initiate's mind that allows him or her to connect with them more easily." 

I am pleased to see that yet again, the independent research of a wide cross-section of the Golden Dawn community, including Donald Michael Kraig, Peregrin Wildoak, Nick Farrell, Sam Scarborough, and other Golden Dawn members, based on many years of initiatic experience, support my own conclusion that the astral aspect of initiation does not at all negate the necessity and importance of the physical aspect of initiation. I have spoken out on this many times in the past, for example here:

"It has been argued that there is always an "astral" element in any genuine Golden Dawn initiation. This is true in the limited sense that the energetic or "astral" body of the candidate is always ultimately impacted by the initiation. In other words, the initiation ritual works on many levels and affects not merely the physical body of the candidate. This does not mean, however, that the actual physical presence of the candidate is not required."

... and here:

"There is an actual transmission of energies from the physical body of the initiating Hierophant to the physical body of the initiate. To fully transmit these energies and fully awaken the LVX current in the energetic body of the candidate is extremely difficult to fully accomplish even under the best of circumstances - with the candidate physically present in the temple."

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ASTONISHING Golden Dawn News!

by Golden Dawn Imperator

David Griffin

As you are likely already aware, the Golden Dawn community began an epoch of unparalleled peace and prosperity, when Nick Farrell recently launched a peace initiative you can read about here.

Nick Farrell

You can hear about my reply to Mr. Farrell's peace initiative in the video embedded below.

Peace is breaking out all over. Over past weeks a lot has happened, although it has occurred discretely. After attacking Nick Farrell for his peace initiative, the hate blogs that have plagued the Golden Dawn community have fallen completely silent, deprived of traffic and furious with Nick Farrell for no longer allowing them to promote their posts on his 7,000 member Facebook group.

Perhaps the most pernicious problem the Golden Dawn community has faced has been decades of polarisation. In recent years, this polarisation has been perpetuated by misguided individuals spreading polarising myths, such as:

• "There has never been any strife in "the Golden Dawn community. We all get along." 
• "All of the problems come from "outside troublemakers" (with an implied finger pointed towards our order).
• A variant on this "us vs them" polarising theme has been that "all problems come from 2 groups that treat the Golden dawn like a business model."

In recent weeks, Aaron Leitch and Samuel Scarborough, have silenced all those who attempted to spread such polarising myths. For such peacekeeping efforts, Aaron Leitch and Sam Scarborough deserve HUGE credit. The peace that has maintained in the Golden Dawn community over the past month wouldn't have been possible without efforts like these, as well as without Mr. Farrell having effectively silenced the hate blogs.

Deborah Leah Shaw

Finally, special commendation goes out to two individuals who have done more than any of us to see that this peace process does not get derailed. These are two members of various Golden Dawn Facebook groups, Deborah Leah Shaw and Andrew Martini.

Andrew Martini

So where is the ASTONISHING Golden Dawn news I promised you in the headline? You might want to sit down before you read on.

I nearly fell off my chair last weekend when I was approached by Steven Ashe bearing a message from Robert Zink, making a take down request of all articles critical of him and promising to do the same. Steven Ashe also deserves commendation for his unsolicited diplomatic efforts in furthering Golden Dawn peace.

Steven Ashe

Yes! Golden Dawn peace continues to spread - and the long and laborious process of removing remnants of decades of tensions continues.

The week before, I had been approached by Olen Rush with a similar take down request, which I immediately honored.

I admit that Robert Zink's take down request request presents me with a conundrum, because there are things about Mr. Zink's past behavior I do not endorse and can't support at all.

Robert Zink

After careful consideration, however, I have decided to honor Mr. Zink's request. The main reason for this is the positive impact this decision will have on the momentum Nick Farrell's peace initiative has been gaining in recent weeks.

After two decades of overt and covert strife in the Golden Dawn community, from the Internet all the way to trademark wars before the US District Court, peace has at long last arrived and seems it is here to stay.

As the Golden Dawn community continues this peace process with a long overdue Internet cleanup of the remnants of strife gone by, It is my fervent wish for the Golden Dawn that the greater Magickal community will see the Golden Dawn for what it is, a community of advanced Magicians with the spiritual maturity and wisdom to put old conflicts and grudges where they belong - in the past.

May the Golden Dawn always remain a shining beacon of light ... 

... for those still groping in darkness!

Hate Bloggers Attack Nick Farrell: Golden Dawn Fundamentalism?

by Golden Dawn Imperator

David Griffin

Nick Farrell's Peace Initiative

You are likely by now aware of MOAA leader, Nick Farrell's, peace initiative to end defamation in the Golden Dawn community. I fully support this initiative, as I set forth in the below State of the Golden Dawn address, which I released last week at Candlemas.

The truce arising from the Farrell initiative has held for over a week now. There have been no attacks on any Golden Dawn leader posted on Mr. Farrell's group nor any other major Golden Dawn group on Facebook.

The only sad news this week came when Golden Dawn hate blogs attacked Nick Farrell for silencing them by no longer allowing them to promote posts on his Facebook group, thus depriving them of any meaningful traffic or readership. Nick Farrell deserves much credit for standing up to these hate blogs.

In other developments, Olen Rush commented on YouTube beneath my "State of the Golden Dawn" video, pointing out that he has completely taken down his blog where once numerous attacks on our order were housed. Mr. Rush pointed out that negative references to that blog still remain today on the Golden Dawn Blog. In respect of Mr. Rush's effective takedown request, I yesterday removed any and all reference to Olen Rush from the Golden Dawn Blog. I took this action unilaterally and unconditionally in yet a further effort to support Nick Farrell's peace initiative - as well to inspire others in the Golden Dawn community to also do the right thing.

Nick Farrell deserves much credit for persevering in his peace initiative, despite being attacked by the hate blogs this week. There have always been - and will always be - a handful of extremists in the Golden Dawn community - and hatred will never be completely banished. Extremists can not continue to tarnish the reputation of the Golden Dawn, however, unless we allow their hatred to continue to have a disproportionate voice.

But does this mean that there can be no legitimate debate in the Golden Dawn community? Especially when it comes to the legitimate differences between one Golden Dawn order and the other? Does the public not have a right to know these differences?

This idea is being put to the test today over on Nick Farrell's group, where my name is being invoked once again this morning, this time in connection with the position of various Golden Dawn orders on the practice of Magick in the Golden Dawn's outer order.

Today's discussion arose when Dean Wilson, leader of Ireland's "Ancient and Honorable Order of the Golden Dawn" set forth his position that:

"the Elemental Implements should not be made in the Elemental Grades" of the Golden Dawn's outer order.

Golden Dawn author, Pat Zalewksi, leader of the Canadian "Order of the Golden Dawn" replied:

"You have get me here Dean as I have never heard of a GD order making elemental weapons in the outer order. Its bloody ridiculous for many reasons."

Morgan Drake Eckstein, of the Colorado based BIOGD, replied:

 "(I have heard of these Orders doing this.... ) I personally think that they should be made as a set in the Inner."

Samuel Scarborough, representing an order I can't mention here by name due to a legal agreement you can view HERE wrote: 

"Unfortunately, Pat Zalewski, there are those that claim to do GD work, yet do drop Inner Order material into the Outer. Those organizations previously named certainly are the most well-known for this particular (and other) set of practices."

Another group member made clear who they were talking about, suggesting "Griff's order" "does quite a bit of this sort of thing".

A leader of Sam Scarborough's order wrote:

"Amen and Amen! Bravo Dean!"

Let me first make clear why I am summarizing and replying to this discussion here rather than directly on Nick Farrell's group where it occurred. I am banned from Nick Farrell's group. Even today, despite Nick's peace initiative, I continue to be mentioned in discussions on Mr. Farrell's group, yet denied any possibility of direct reply. This dynamic has contibuted heavily to decades of Golden Dawn community polarization.

Moving on to relevant points of discussion, we observe that there is a faction of orders in the Golden Dawn community that do not permit use of the Golden Dawn's elemental implements in their outer orders. 

In fact, these orders reserve all practice of Magick for their Inner Orders. Not one of these groups will give you any Magickal instruction or coaching until you reach their Inner Order, which typically takes at least five years.

The position of our order, the European headquartered, Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, in this matter is quite different that those of other orders stated above. We are, in fact the ONLY Golden Dawn order that will teach you Magick from the very first day your are accepted for membership in our order.

In 1888, in Victorian England, it made sense to make people wait until the Inner Order to learn the secrets of Magick. But today, when you can buy all that same "secret" magick for $37.95 from Llewellyn (discounted to $24.50 on Amazon), does this still make sense? Times change and no one can put the genie back in the bottle. The reality is that, due to the publication of basic Golden Dawn material by Crowley and Regardie, there is an entire army of self taught solitary Golden Dawn magicians out there picking up bad habits and in desperate need of proper training, guidance, and coaching. Our order's position is that it makes no sense at all to make people wait for years on end without proper Magickal training. We are a school of Magick, after all, and not of history.

For the sake of argument, let's say you join one of these orders that make you wait years before Magickal training? Just what Magick will you learn once training finally arrives?

This - And little more.

This is not at all the case with our order. We are Golden Dawn traditionalists. All of the Magick and Alchemy we teach in our First, Second, and Third orders comes straight from Hermetic, Rosicrucian, and Golden Dawn initiatic sources. 

We are very fortunate to have far more to offer our students than just what's in a Llewellyn book. In our order, we offer the complete three order training program originally envisioned for the Golden Dawn, but only partly realized by S.L. MagGregor Mathers.

Let us return to the discussion that prompted this article, the question of whether or not the Golden Dawn's elemental implements should be used by Magicians in the Elemental grades of the Outer Order. In our order, students do use these Magickal tools in our Outer Order. They use them to master the Forces of each Element using invocation of published Qabalistic and Enochian Magickal forces.

Unlike other Golden Dawn orders, however, our Second Order contains a great deal of unpublished Hermetic Magick. One part of this is Chaldaen Magick. Our Adepti Minori also make and consecrate new Elemental tools, but tools that use unpublished Chaldean Magickal entities, names, and sigils. These are used for secret Chaldean Hermetic Magick that is available in no other Golden Dawn order.

Is it any wonder that we are today the world's largest and fastest growing Golden Dawn order? In case you are interested, here is a direct link to our order's application process.

I respect that other Golden Dawn orders choose to make people wait for Magick like in 1888. It is our diversity that makes our Golden Dawn community so rich. I am not not implying that any of my colleagues from other orders are Golden Dawn Fundamentalists. Still, we as a community should be ever vigilant for the dangers of all forms of extremism including dogmatism and fundamentalism.

The Golden Dawn is not a religion, Israel Regardie is not Martin Luther, and the Llewellyn book is certainly not a "Golden Dawn Bible."

I am not claiming that our order is better than any other - only that we do things differently. There are important differences between Golden Dawn orders and the public deserves to know what these differences are.

One thing has became clear today. Despite ongoing success of Nick Farrell's peace initiative, meaningful debate about differences between Golden Dawn orders remains hobbled across different Facebook groups and blogs rather than in direct dialogue. I am optimistic that also this situation may yet improve. In any case, we as a community must not allow Nick Farrell's peace initiative to be scuttled by extremism in any form.

Legitimate Philosophical Debate in the Golden Dawn Community

by Alpha Omega Imperator

David Griffin

Yesterday, I attempted to reply on a Facebook group to aspirant Desiree Finkbeiner, who was asking about the difference between various Golden Dawn orders. I entered the discussion because i had been mentioned by name, and because Sam Scarborough was making inaccurate statements about the Alpha Omega.

The ensuing discussion involving Sam Scarborough, Nick Farrell and myself was the closest thing to genuine dialogue that we have seen in many years in the Golden Dawn community. Unfortunately, today moderator Nick Farrell erased the entire discussion and banned me from the group, posting a message completely misrepresenting what I  had written and accusing me of trying to play some sort of political one upsmanship?

Why does answering questions posed by potential students the real differences between one Golden Dawn order and the other need to be viewed as a bad thing or some sort of political oneupsmanship?

Should we as a community fear open, honest discussion about the differences between our various orders? There were a lot of good insights on the thread started by Desiree Finkbeiner who just innocently asked about the differences between all these orders. In my opinion, it is a shame that the entire discussion was removed by Nick Farrell. Such behavior is unfair to Desiree and others like her who want to know and deserve to know about the real differences between us. Moreover, Mr. Farrell has again repressed any legitimate debate in the Golden Dawn community.

Are we as a community not mature enough to have an open, civil dialogue about the legitimate differences between one Golden Dawn order and the other?

Prospective students legitimately want to know what these differences are. In fact, they DESERVE to know.

ARE there no real differences? Of course there are. 

Then what is so bad about coming clean about them in a direct, civil manner.

And why does legitimate dialogue about these things have to be interpreted as some sort of schoolyard "My order is better than your order" nonsense.

I think part of the problem is that some people in the Golden Dawn community feel that Mysticism is a pejorative term when it comes to the Golden Dawn. 

It is NOT.

There is a long history of very positive Mystical tendencies in our GD community. Just look at A.E. Waite's "Fellowship of the Rosy Cross" which completely surpressed Golden Dawn Magick in favor of Christian mysticism. Is there anything "inferior" about that to Mathers "Alpha Omega"?

Of course not! They are both very important and valid schools in their own right.

In reality, all orders have some Mysticism and some Magick. In both our philosophies and our methods, however, some orders are more Mystical and others more Magickal. There is nothing wrong with this. It is merely a question of unique philosophies and methods. All GD orders do not need to be clones of one another. In reality, we frequently do have divergent philosophies and methods. 

Should we be afraid of a civil, open, and honest dialogue about these things? 

Should all such discussion be stamped out by heavy handed moderation? Do aspirants not deserve better than this of our community?

Let's see if I can't make this point clearer with a few analogies a couple of steps removed from the Golden Dawn, so that our passions perhaps no longer cloud the issue.

Below are some analogies that I hope will make this point clearer.

----------------------------

Would you agree that all good medical people want the health of their patients?

Would you agree all good spiritual groups want the spiritual health of their members?

Would you agree that different groups claim to be in the medical field but have different approaches to health? For example, the DC, MD, DO, and Naturopathic doctor all want a healthy patient but approach it differently?

What is different? Their philosophy of medicine? Yes. Their methods? Yes.

Are the different approaches more appropriate for different people and their ailments? Seems so.

Is there a place for each approach? Seems so.

Are all of them "wrong" except one? Doesn't seem so. Can they all be right depending on the patient? Seems so.

Is the "right" approach fully dependent upon the patient? Seems so.

Should they be very clear to the patient the positive and negative aspects of their approach for that particular patient? Seems so.

Should the medical professional make their goal, methods, and philosophy VERY clear to the patient so he or she can make an informed choice? Seems so.

Is it for the patient to decide? Ultimately.

-----------------------------------

Would you agree there are different martial arts?

Would you agree they all want the same thing? No.

Unlike medical people, who have the same goal with different methods and philosophies, martial arts can have different goals, methods, and philosophies.

Can two martial arts have the same goal but different methods? Yes.

Is one martial art superior to another? Only in respect to a particular goal.

Should the student make sure their personal goal and the goal of the martial art are the same? Yes.

Should the martial art make their goal, methods, and philosophy VERY clear to the student so he or she can make an informed choice? Seems so.

---------------------

The GD collectively seems to have the same purpose. What differs between orders are our philosophies and methods. A philosophy of Magick or Mysticism is just one such example. The same methods, driven by different philosophies, creates different results. The same philosophies with different methods creates different results.

If we in the Alpha Omega are focused on "Making Magicians," it demonstrates our philosophy. This mission also informs our approach to our methods.

The Marines and the Boy Scouts both go on hiking and camping trips, but their goals, philosophies, and methods are radically different. Yet, a statement that "Marines and the Boy Scouts both go on hiking and camping trips" is misleading for one that doesn't know the difference between a Marine and a Boy Scout.

For an order to say "We seek the spiritual growth of our members" is as informative as a hospital saying "We want our patients to be healthy." It implies that other hospitals want their patients to be sick (or at least don't care if they are healthy).

------------------------

So what do I mean by divergent philosophies of Magick and Mysticism in the Golden Dawn community?

Immediately following the 1903 schism, William Butler Yeats wrote an article entitled "Is the Golden Dawn to remain a Magical order?" Ever since, a chasm has emerged between those in the Golden Dawn community who gravitate more towards Mysticism and those who gravitate more towards Magick. This has created fundamental differences between one Golden Dawn order and the other, which endure in our Golden Dawn community even until today.

This is natural, since Mysticism and Magick are two quite distinct spiritual paths. The primary difference between Magick and Mysticism lies codified in the actual methods of practice, together with the Mystical or Magical inclinations of the practitioner.

The Mystical path refers to the capacity and will of the practitioner to place oneself in a passive position in relationship to eternal Being and the forces of nature, which the Practitioner begins to invoke and pray to, so they may manifest and enlighten one, thus spiritually uplifting and exalting the practitioner. 

The Magical practitioner, on the other hand, does not place him or herself in a passive state towards natural and Divine forces, but rather in a positive state. Recognizing the Divine Spark inside oneself, the practitioner actively collaborates with Eternal Being rather than waiting for its manifestations.

In Mysticism, the practitioner expects Divinity to manifest itself, and to ascend the staircase that leads from below to on high aided by the Divine hand that takes us and leads us ever upwards.

Magic does not expect this, instead conquering the Inner Planes through one's own effort rather than through Divine aid. Thus, whereas the Mystical approach is one of submission, the Magician instead is a conqueror.

A perfect example of the Magical path may be found in the Mithraic Ritual deposited in Paris, which shows one such practice of divine Ascension of the Magical initiate. While rising towards Divinity to be received like a prodigal Son or Daughter, the practitioner greets the Gods as equals that gradually appear, not fearing them or subjugating oneself before them, but admonishing them and blandishing them with Magical words that open the gates of heaven.

Whereas Magick is based on knowledge, Mysticism is based on on ignorance in the literal sense of "ignoring" or "unknowing." In fact, one of the most important mystical texts in all of Christianity, The Cloud of Unknowing, speaks of making oneself obscure, humble and ignorant before the unmanifest - to remain there, in silence, gradually emptying oneself, while waiting for something or someone (God) to come and fill the void thus created.

Thus two completely different modalities become evident. Whereas the Mystic reflects the Divine light that is poured out upon him, the Magician generates this light, becoming an emitter himself. 

The foremost exponent of the Mystical path in the Golden Dawn was Arthur Edward Waite, who completely suppressed Magick in favor of Christian Mysticism in his Fellowship of the Rosy Cross and its Inner Order, the Rosa Rossa et Aureae Crucis (Rectified Rite). Waite's Fellowship of the Rosy Cross, reconstructed in recent years and open only to Christians, today remains the most Mystical order in the Golden Dawn community.

The foremost exponent of the Magical path in the Golden Dawn was S.L. MacGregor Mathers. Mathers understood that the Golden Dawn primarily as a Magical rather than a Mystical tradition. Over time the Magical spiritual path has become more and more pronounced in Mathers' Alpha Omega. The A.O. today remains the most Magical order in the Golden Dawn community, in that we teach Ritual Magick already from Day One.

Does this mean that the Alpha Omega is the only valid Golden Dawn order. Of course not. We are just a rose among roses. We do hold a unique place in our community, however, and our philosophy and methods are best suited for certain kinds of students.

There is nothing wrong with having a philosophy and methods similar to ours in the AO. There is also nothing wrong with having a very different philosophy and methods, as does the "Fellowship of the Rosy Cross." 

There is nothing wrong with having a philosophy and methods that lie somewhere between these two extremes. After all, like I said earlier, all esoteric orders have some Mysticism and some Magick.

I urge the leaders of all Golden Dawn orders to begin to set forth their own unique philosophies and to be transparent and forthcoming about the spiritual methods that they actually teach.

Aspirants like Desiree Finkbeiner, who had her legitimate questions unfairly erased by moderation, HAVE A RIGHT TO KNOW.

Astral-Only Initiation: Broad Consensus across the Golden Dawn Community

by Golden Dawn Imperator

David Griffin

The discussion regarding the benefits and limitations of Astral-only initiation has resurfaced again this week. This discussion has gone on in the Golden Dawn community for years. The fundamental question is whether or not anyone can be exclusively astrally initiated at a distance.

Proponents of Astral-only initiation claim that a group of people (or a Temple) can initiate a person by performing a ritual somewhere else for a person separated by geographical distance, allegedly initiating the candidate by reading off their name in Temple during the ritual.

I have pointed out numerous times in the past, for example here and here, that there is a vast amount of concurrence between the conclusions of various Golden Dawn members all across the entire panorama of the Golden Dawn community on the subject of Astral-only initiation.

Sadly there are still not enough Golden Dawn temples around and Astral-only initiation just does not cut it. This is why it is important that there are other good options around. For example, Peregrin Wildoak this week wrote:

We may not be able to receive [initiation] physically, but we can unfold as if we had by carefully practicing the broader tradition.

Peregrin is correct. There needs to be a effective means of Self-Initiation that somewhat accomplishes the same magical goals as physical initiation present in a real Golden Dawn temple. This closely mirrors the results of my own independent research. There are just not enough locations with Golden Dawn temples and better alternatives must be presented for aspirants in outlying areas.

I still believe that nothing can beat traditional Golden Dawn initiation. If you do not have access to a traditional temple though, my research indicates that the best thing to do is to awaken the magical forces inside of you using Ritual Magic.

This is also why I wrote the Ritual Magic Manual ...

The Ritual Magic Manual fills an essential need for would be Golden Dawn magicians by providing everything you need for the magical component of Self-Initiation on your own, in a complete - step by step - user-friendly format. In the Ritual Magic Manual, you will find all of the pentagrams, hexagrams, Egyptian God Forms, Enochian and Qabalistic names sigils and names of power, flashing colors, etc. - all in one place!

My primary objection to Astral-only initiation has been the less than honest manner that it has been portrayed. For example I wrote here, that my objection arises...:

"...when modern innovations like Astral Initiation get misrepresented to the public as traditional or classical Golden Dawn practices. It is the dishonesty that is most destructive."

In regard to confusion caused by proponents of Astral-only initiation, Donald Michael Kraig wrote here:

"The thing I don’t like is when people pay dues, read some papers, do no work, pay for various “astral initiations,” and then claim to be experts with high levels of initiation. They make real occultists and initiates look foolish and bad." 

My research into the subject has always left me wary that the methods used by proponents of Astral-only initiation have the potential of becoming dangerous. In the past, proponants of Astral-only Initiation have criticised me rather harshy for this online.

I was pleased to read this week that results of independent research conducted by Aaron Leitch has led to similar conclusions. Aaron Leitch writes:

Personally, I find this to be rather dangerous.  I’ve seen how taxing a Neophyte Ceremony (and its aftermath) can be on any candidate, even with access to a full Temple and all the guidance and support that comes with it.  Blasting someone with a massive bolt of LVX and then expecting them to sink or swim on their own is… well, not something I’d do to someone myself.

On other aspects, proponents of Astral-only initiation claim that the founders of the Golden Dawn were themselves  initiated using Astral-only initiation. In this regard, Peregrin Wildoak this week writes:

There are no records of Mathers, Westcott or Woodman travelling to receive physical initiation from the supposed German source of the Golden Dawn. This lack of evidence however, does not support the view they were astrally initiated by continental adepts while safely back home in England.

Proponents of Astral-only initiation claim that it accomplishes everything that traditional Golden Dawn initiation does. I have addressed this issue numerous times over the years. For example, I here I wrote:

"It has been argued that there is always an "astral" element in any genuine Golden Dawn initiation. This is true in the limited sense that the energetic or "astral" body of the candidate is always ultimately impacted by the initiation. In other words, the initiation ritual works on many levels and affects not merely the physical body of the candidate. This does not mean, however, that the actual physical presence of the candidate is not required."

... and here:

"There is an actual transmission of energies from the physical body of the initiating Hierophant to the physical body of the initiate. To fully transmit these energies and fully awaken the LVX current in the energetic body of the candidate is extremely difficult to fully accomplish even under the best of circumstances - with the candidate physically present in the temple."

Reaching similar concusions, Aaron Leitch this week writes:

I agree that *all* initiations involve an astral process. If it didn’t, it wouldn’t be anything more than a passion-play walk-through done merely to say “welcome to our group...The astral is where the magick of the initiation happens. But this is not the same thing that is meant by groups who claim to offer “astral initiation.”

Alpha Omega Adept, Sincerus Renatus correctly points out that the ritual theater elements is also important, here:

"The ritual is a drama, a play, which also has as a function to impart a though form or cognitive structure into the candidate, a theme so to speak, which gives a tone or atmosphere for the Grade. This has to be experienced live and in person, not read through or imagined in the inner eye. Compare this to reading a novel and watching a stage play; two legitimate artistic expressions but quite different in nature and quality. Full and physical initiation is a stage play of old Greek dramatic proportions."

On the same subject, Samuel Scarborough this week writes:

There are certain criteria for an initiation to be considered effective and proper. You clearly outline those criteria of Physical, Astral, Etheric, Mental, Spiritual. I normally only use three levels (Physical, Astral, and Etheric). An initiation should have elements where there is some action on these levels at the same time for the Candidate.

Alpha Omega's, V.H. Frater P. commented here:

"What i miss in this debate is the simple fact that, apart from the energetic transmission from the Hierophant unto the candidate, it is impossible to impregnate the MIND of the candidate with the physical symbols that are displayed in these ceremonies. For doing this, the candidate has to be physically present, and able to use his eyes! Moreover, by blindfolding him/her and exposing him to a dramatic procedure, his mind is made extra sensitive and absorptive. This is an ancient technique."

Donald Michael Kraig this week added:

"When someone says that an Astral Initiation is the one that really counts, they are talking about type AI-1. But some people who are officers in groups or initiates of groups that primarily perform AI-2 initiations falsely want you to believe that saying an Astral Initiation is the one that counts refers to what they are doing. It does not."

I am pleased to see that, whereas for many years I stood nearly alone in pointing out the problems with Astral-only initiationcommunity have come to so closely resemble what I have been saying all along.

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