The Secret Chiefs UNVEILED (Part II): On the True Nature of Golden Dawn Lineage

by Golden Dawn

Imperator David Griffin

His Holiness Dalai Lama

"All major spiritual traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness. The important thing is they should be part of our daily lives."  

- His Holiness Dalai Lama

In a desperate attempt to divert attention from the still fomenting Satanism & SRIA scandal (here), SRIA/GD leaders are wheeling back out every controversial topic they can think of. First they resumed spreading massive misrepresentations about the Secret Chiefs (refuted here). Now they are trying desperately to divert attention with a rehash of discussing the true nature of Golden Dawn lineage.

Today's Golden Dawn community is made up of a continuum between two poles. On the one hand, we have traditionalist Golden Dawn orders like S.L. MacGregor Mathers' Alpha Omega that view the Golden Dawn as a living, evolving tradition and are Magical in their approach to spiritual development. 

At the opposite end of the spectrum, reconstructionist Golden Dawn orders see the Golden Dawn as a dead object of historical curiosity to be reconstructed. Most reconstructionist G.D. orders are led by SRIA members and are primarily Mystical in their approach. For a thorough analysis of the fundamental difference between Magick and Mysticism, see my previous articles here and here.

SRIA is a Trinitarian Christian segregationist, Freemasonic society dedicated to amateur historical research. SRIA is not an accredited academic institution and its research can not be considered as reliable scientific data.

For example one SRIA/GD leader this week wrote:

"If people claim that [MacGregor Mathers] was part of a mysterious Third order (and all that that entails) then the answer is simple enough - they have to prove it. So far there is much talk but no one has stepped up to the plate to bat- nor will they in my opinion."

In reality, the above argument has been refuted over and over, and solid evidence presented, for example here, here, here, here, and here, yet no meaningful factual dialogue whatsoever has ensued - not even once. Instead, SRIA/GD leaders merely repeat their same arguments over and over in violation of all academic protocol, propaganda style, pretending they have never received any answer.

Such use of propaganda rhetorical strategies makes it clear that SRIA is not merely an amateur research society as it purports to be, but deliberately employs propaganda methods in a dishonest attempt to manipulate esoteric organisations and entire communities.

Moreover, when examining controversial topics, SRIA/GD leaders insist that only historical data may be considered as "evidence" or "proof" of anything. This ridiculous propaganda game has gone on now for over a decade.

For example ne SRIA/GD propaganda agent this week issued a "challenge" to the Secret Chiefs to "prove" their existance by telling him the super secret decoder ring password he has invented to "test" them. Considering how this SRIA/GD leader has deliberately ignored all actually presented evidence for years, this is obviously just the latest in many years of cheap propaganda ploys.

As we see yet again in the above example, SRIA/GD agents always insist on an inappropriate, overly narrow, definition of "evidence" in order to stifle any meaningful, scholarly dialogue. The Golden Dawn, unlike SRIA, is not an amateur research club, but rather a initiatic spiritual tradition, similar to the great initiatic spiritual traditions of the East, such as Zen or Tibetan Buddhism.

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche
Shambhala Buddhist Lineage

Frequently, what is of the very essence to initiatic spiritual traditions is dismissed by SRIA/GD amateur historians as irrelevant, as it does not fit into their arbitrary, deliberately over-narrow definition of "evidence."

Therefore, discussion of controversial issues in the Golden Dawn, such as the Secret Chiefs or Golden Dawn lineage has remained stagnant for decades, due to SRIA/GD leaders refusing to even look at the evidence that actually has been presented, insisting on a yardstick that completely misses the point when it comes to the great initiatic spiritual traditions of the world. It is noteworthy that they have even threatened their students with expulsion should they examine the actual evidence for themselves either.

We recently witnessed the clash of these diametrically opposed approaches to the Golden Dawn in  Part 1 of "The Secret Chiefs UNVEILED" (here), On the True Nature of the Secret Chiefs. When considering the true nature of Golden Dawn lineage, this fundamental difference in approach between G.D. traditionalists and SRIA/GD reconstructionists comes into even sharper focus.

The greatest problem is that SRIA/GD reconstructionists view Golden Dawn lineage merely as a matter of historical curiosity. This week, one SRIA/GD author wrote:

"Lineage does not matter. All that matters is to do the work."

Curiously, the author wrote this comment in reply to his article entitled The Death of Alpha Omega Lineage. The question naturally arises, if lineage does not matter to this author, then why is he obsessed with debunking Alpha Omega lineage?

The short answer is "power and control." SRIA/GD leaders are terrified of the spiritual lineages/practices the Secret Chiefs have now made available to the entire Golden Dawn community, as control and domination of the community is slipping through their fingers.

The Death of Alpha Omega Lineage claims that, since all outer order Alpha Omega temples ceased operation for a time, Alpha Omega lineage ceased to exist in the 1940s. This argument is shocking not because of the allegations it makes, but in that it reveals that SRIA/GD leaders still do not even understand the true nature of Golden Dawn lineage, even though I have explained this over and over for years, for example here, here, here, here, and here.

The problem is that amateur SRIA/GD "historians" understand Golden Dawn lineage only as though it were merely the sort of formalistic "lineage" one encounters in Freemasonic groups like SRIA. In Freemasonry, lineage indeed amounts to little more than a formal means of mutual recognition, using paper trails of charters to establish so-called regularity.

In the Alpha Omega, we do have our charters, etc., which we are very proud of, but we also understand there is more to spiritual lineage than mere paper trails of charters.

What SRIA/GD leaders pretend still not to understand, is that the Golden Dawn is first and foremost a spiritual tradition. Therefore, charters and such are by no means all that matter.

"In all of the great initiatic spiritual traditions, both East and West, lineage carries with it a set of spiritual practices that lead to specific states of spiritual realization."

Let us return, for a moment, to the SRIA/GD argument that: "Lineage does not matter. What matters is to do the work." This is certainly half true. "To do the work," however, one must first have the necessary spiritual practices, as is also the case with Buddhist lineages, for example.

Spiritual lineages, in reality, boil down to sets of spiritual practices transmitted by spiritual traditions across time, each that carries with it a specific state of spiritual attainment. In the case of the Golden Dawn, one can legitimately argue that all Golden Dawn groups that use the spiritual practices contained in Israel Regardie's The Golden Dawn each has a certain amount of spiritual lineage, because spiritual lineage is embedded in the spiritual practices themselves.

In recent years, the Golden Dawn's Secret Chiefs have made their existence and their presence known by releasing vast quantities of hitherto unknown Golden Dawn material, including essential spiritual lineages/practices that lead to even more rapid and effective spiritual attainment.

SRIA/GD leaders, desperate not to lose power, domination, and control over the Golden Dawn community, desperately refuse to admit is that Golden Dawn, Hermetic, and Rosicrucian lineages do not begin and end with what Israel Regardie published. Using their usual inappropriate yardstick, they also scream daily across the Internet that there is no "historical proof" that the Secret Chiefs even exist.

All of this is completely irrelevant. What really matters is the effectiveness for spiritual growth of the newly released spiritual practices themselves. And effective they are, as is proven by "the work" itself!

Academic anthropologist, Leslie McQuade, explains this with the following scientific analogy:

"There are two ways to trace your heritage as a physical human being, just as there are two ways to trace your spiritual heritage.  SRIA would have you believe there is only one-way: that of paper documentation.  This equates in physical terms to birth certificates, which clearly show who begot who.  If records have been destroyed, whether purposely or accidentally, or were never issued in the first place, one finds a dead end to the genealogical search. 

In our modern age though, things have changed significantly.  The DNA in our cells carries important information about our physical heritage which, unlike paper records, cannot be altered to suit expediency or political agendas. 

We are all familiar with the idea that birth records can be altered to hide problematic sires.  We similarly know that the genetic record cannot lie.  For example, documents may show that the red hair you have is a result of a long lost Scottish ancestor. The genetic record however, shows that you are in fact the milkman’s child. 

Spiritual lineage is best equated to this genetic record.  This is because although the names of your ancestors cannot be shown, the result of their physical presence in your genetic makeup is undeniable.  The Golden Dawn spiritual lineages/practices recently released by the Secret Chiefs while they may not obey the artificial construct of a Freemasonic paper-trail, do confer upon the practitioner certain undeniable characteristics of spiritual attainment, thus proving their authentic existence as much as red hair or shovel-shaped incisors."

- Leslie McQuade

SRIA/GD leaders are so desperate to retain power, they would completely deny access to these superior Golden Dawn lineages/spiritual practices to their students. For SRIA/GD leaders who claim to be spiritual stewards, this is an unspeakable abdication of responsibility and act of aggression against their students.

"The extreme effectiveness of the magical practices speaks for itself. The Alpha Omega has proven this to Adepts and Initiates from across the entire Golden Dawn community, who came to our International Golden Dawn Festivals and saw for themselves."

Here is what Golden Dawn members from around the world say about spiritual lineages recently released by the Secret Chiefs, available for the entire Golden Dawn community to practice today:

"To anyone who doubts the existence of the physical Secret Chiefs or the authenticity of their Golden Dawn teachings, if you would have attended the Festival, you would have seen it for yourself. I along with many others who did attend, ARE the proof of its power and authenticity. The Festival was open to anyone who wanted to come, so no one who was not here can rightfully deny the authenticity or power of the new material. I attended the whole week of the Festival and I can personally attest to just how powerful the  supplementary Magick newly released by the Secret Chiefs really is." 

- Frater O.B., Alvin, TX

"The spiritual practices hidden behind the symbols of the Golden Dawn are finally being revealed. The Golden Dawn is finally becoming what it should have been since the beginning." 

- Soror FL, Atlanta, GA

"The new material is astonishing in the simplicity of the techniques and the purity of energy. I could really feel that this is what the Golden Dawn was meant to be. If anyone of those present had their doubts about the authenticity of the Secret Chiefs, it truly has been cleared out by the material released the second day alone." 

- VH Frater K, Berlin, Germany

Frater ATLV, Houston, TX 

"A new unbroken oral tradition and direct transmission instead of just the same old stuff from books. 

I attended the entire week of this year's Festival. I truly feel that the Magical material newly released by the Secret Chiefs brings the AO back to a state of unprofaned wisdom and authenticity that has not been seen in the Golden Dawn since the schism of 1903.  

To those who may criticize or deny these new teachings. You had the chance to come and you could have seen it for yourself. My experiences over the week, although short was proof of the potency of the new teachings. I feel honored to be one of the very few in the world who have received this knowledge until now." 

- Frater ATLV, Houston, Texas  

"The vibration very efficient - overall, interesting and energizing. in concept." 

- Soror SKH, Montenegro

"The supplemental materials for the Neophyte grade fits like hand in glove. Some of it is advanced, but when you see it together with the rest of the material it is simple and obvious. You can see that the original material is for learning purposes and the supplemental material is for practical application of the old material. It seems like a natural extension. It is an honor and a privilege to be a part of this historical moment. This Festival has been a page turner in my life."  

- Frater NTI, Gothenburg, Sweden 

"Basically, I felt the purity of the newly released supplemental Magick and it not being tainted by past energy of others. It all feels so clean and undiluted. Working with this GD Magic is a rare experience. When working with GD Magick from published material, you just don't get that undiluted power." 

- Soror LET, Melbourne, Australia

"The fantastic new energy that shined into my being as we did the advanced Neophyte meditation and the rectified Middle Pillar touched my Soul. First to silence, peace, and fulfilment and later brought tears to my eyes. I could really feel the solar energy and the feeling that it stayed with me."

- Soror DSLO, Ostersund, Sweden 

"I have been practicing Golden Dawn Magick for 25 years and I have never experienced a meditation so profound and effective as the 2.0 version of the Neophye Meditation transmitted to us this week from the Secret Chiefs. Understanding that this is just the barest foreshadowing of what is to come, I am thrilled for the future. Truly, a new day for the Golden Dawn. We have been waiting and we have been answered." 

- Soror PPAS, Amsterdam, Holland

"J'ai resenti les effets sur le corps. Tres bons. On le resents immediatemnet."  

- Frater JR, Duola, Cameroon

"I have been practicing the Magick Golden Dawn for 11 years. I was quite astonished today when I learned the newly released Magick. No one is grafting anything onto the Golden Dawn."  

- Frater C.F., Mexico City, Mexico 

"Just reading some of the new rituals unveiled in the Neoophyte grade is enough to develop an astonishing spiritual exaltation. I was so surprised to experience this before even actively performing the rituals. 

After some 26 years of working with Golden Dawn ritual and basing magical operations on the structures of the Neophyte grade ritual, it finally makes sense. 

I have been perpetually groping towards this level of understanding and now it is as though the light has been switched on. The world's great esoteric streams all use certain methods of blinding and encrypting teachings in their outer grades. Finally we can experience this authenticity of lineage here in the outermost grade of the Golden Dawn."

- Frater IVIOL, Manchester, England

In case you missed, you can still read Part I of The Secret Chiefs Unveiled HERE.

(EU OHIM reg 000063925)

Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn®

Making Magicians - Since 1888

Click HERE to explore our Outer Order, undergraduate level Magical training program.

Lineage and Spiritual Traditions East and West

by Alpha Omega Imperator

David Griffin

There has again been significant buzz in recent weeks on the Golden Dawn fora and blogs about the importance, or lack thereof, of lineage in the Golden Dawn tradition. The concept of lineage is found not only in esoteric orders, but also in the great spiritual traditions of the East, as well as in Christianity and Freemasonry in the West.

In Christianity, the doctrine of Apostolic Succession maintains that the Christian Church today is the spiritual successor to the original body of believers in Christ, composed of the Apostles. In pre-Protestant Reformation Churches, Apostolic Succession is claimed as having been passed through unbroken lines of bishops beginning with the original Apostles.

In its formal aspect, lineage may amount to little more than a formal means of mutual recognition, as in the case of Freemasonry, which uses charters and systems of mutual recognition between Grand lodges to establish ‘regularity.’

George Washington

Of course, in the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and in the Rosicrucian Order of Alpha et Omega, we have our charters, which we are very proud of, even though we understand that there is more to spiritual lineage than just charters. The Golden Dawn is not unique in in this regard, either.

In Western esotericism, numerous orders use lineage as a means of ensuring a direct transmission of spiritual principles and energies. Lineage, like trademarks, is also a basic form of protection for the public, that what members find is actually what they associate with the name or the spiritual tradition. Who wants to join a Martinist order, only to find Hindu teachings instead, or to join the Golden Dawn looking for tradtional initiation and to learn Hermetic and Rosicrucian magic and alchemy, only to find New Age teachings and "Astral" initiation instead?

Louis-Claude de St. Martin

Martinist orders, for examples all claim lineage deriving from Louis-Claude de St. Martin. L'Ordre Martiniste (the Martinist Order) came about in 1884 when Gerard Encausse (Papus) met August Chaboseau. They discovered that they had both apparently received Martinist initiation through two different chains of succession which linked back to Saint-Martin and his original disciples. Papus claimed to have come into the possession of the original papers of de Pasqually and to have been given authority in the Rite of Saint-Martin by his friend Henri Viscount Delaage. However, Encausse realized that there was a "missing link" in his own chain of succession: he and Chaboseau therefore "swapped initiations" in order to consolidate their lineages.

Let us not forget, however, that the Golden Dawn is first and foremost a spiritual tradition. Therefore, charters and such, are not all that matter. In all of the great spiritual traditions, both East and West, lineage carries with it a spiritual transmission or realization, as in the case of Dharma transmission in Zen Buddhism.

Zen Buddhism, for example, maintains records of their historical teachers who, according to the traditional history of that school, have passed the Dharma from generation to generation in an unbroken line since the time of the Buddha. Dharma transmission is the formal confirmation by a master of Zen or Chan Buddhism of a student's awakening. This one-to-one transmission is said to trace back over 2,500 years to Gautama Buddha when he gave dharma transmission to his disciple Mahakasyapa, who is regarded as the first patriarch of Zen in India.

Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche
Shambhala Buddhist Lineage

I have often heard people in the Golden Dawn community say that: "Lineage does not matter. What matters is to do the work." This is certainly half true. "To do the work," however, one must have the necessary spiritual practices, as is the case with the Buddhist lineages.

The various lineages of the Alpha Omega carry with them a vast corpus of knowledge and spiritual practices from the Hermetic and Rosicrucian traditions. These include advanced magical and Hermetic Internal Alchemical systems that the Alpha Omega already shares with a number of traditional Golden Dawn orders.